We Build Then We Break
by KawaiixCherryxBlossom
Summary: Ash and his friends go into the mountains near Pallet for a week of R&R, but the world they find when they return is completely different from the one they left. Misty tells of their fight for survival in the midst of a war nobody was expecting.
1. Great Companion

**We Build Then We Break**

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Hello everyone! Welcome to my new fanfiction, We Build Then We Break. The idea for this story has been in my head for many years but I was always too afraid to write it down because I didn't want to do a bad job of it. It was inspired by a set of novels by Australian author John Marsden called 'The Tomorrow Series'. It will be loosely based on the events of the books so all credit for the idea goes to John Marsden. It will also take ideas from the two Pokemon Gamecube RPG Games – Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness. I am really excited to write it and I hope I can do it justice.

Shippings will include a Misty/Ash/May triangle _and _an Ash/Misty/Gary triangle. Who ends up with who will be revealed in due course. :D There may also be a little Brock/Sabrina romance later on.

Music inspires all my writing and sets the tone of the story. At the end of each chapter there will be a 'Playlist' with the songs that inspired the chapter.

This prologue is a 'pilot' of sorts – just a taste to see whether you guys like the idea of this fanfiction.

Please leave me any feedback you have in a review. I just love hearing what you guys think and it really helps to receive any suggestions or constructive criticism on my writing. I will happily respond to any questions and comments.

Hope you all enjoy the Prologue!

xoxo

KCB

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**Prologue**

Great Companion

_It all began with a phone call._

It was just another normal morning in Cerulean City when the sound of the phone ringing echoed through the Gym. I was in the arena feeding our many Water-type Pokemon at the time, and I silently cursed myself for not remembering to bring the cordless phone with me. It really irked me when I got to the phone just in time for the person on the other end to hang up. Nonetheless, I threw the last bit of food into the pool and raced through the Gym into the kitchen. This took me a good thirty seconds and I was a little surprised when it was still ringing as I picked up the receiver.

"Cerulean City Gym, this is Misty," I was panting from the sprint to the phone, but I managed to get the words out.

"Mist!" the video phone kicked in then, but I already knew who it was. I felt the corners of my lips pull up in a smile that I couldn't resist when I saw the face of Ash Ketchum.

"Ash! Hi!" I realised I probably sounded like my overexcited, eccentric sisters, but I was so excited to see him and hear his voice after so long that I could have burst! He smiled back at me, and I tried to compose myself as I stared at his face. I couldn't deny that he sort of took my breath away in a pleasing and surprising way.

Age had been very kind to my friend of eight years. His childish features remained through the playfulness in his chocolate brown eyes, but his face was older, his features more defined on his tanned skin, dark from his recent travel. Something that hadn't changed though, was the mop of jet-black hair atop his head. But I couldn't imagine it any other way.

"So, top four in the Sinnoh League huh? Not bad Mr Pokemon Master!" that old nickname had stuck even after all these years.

"You were watching," he looked pleased, proud of himself, and he should be. It was only natural that Ash felt like he had to prove himself to me, after all those years of me pushing him to be better and stronger. I probably didn't have the best, most supportive methods but hey, they had worked!

"Of course I was watching. You did great Ash, I'm really proud of you," I felt my cheeks burning a little as I spoke the words, but they were the truth, and he should know them. He was everything he had aspired to be all those years ago when he had set out on his Pokemon journey.

"Geez Mist, don't get all sappy on me or anything," he smirked playfully.

"Oh that's great, the _one_ time I pay you a complement…" I joined in the game that was exclusively ours.

"That's true, it's a rare occurrence, sort of like a blue moon!"

"You're lucky you're on the other side of the phone," I challenged him with a threatening glare. He only laughed, that same childlike laugh that I missed hearing every day as I had for so many years.

"So how are things at the Gym?" he asked a few seconds later.

"They're okay, you know, the usual paperwork and bigheaded trainers, but my sisters have actually been helping me out a little lately which is nice!"

"That's good to hear, because I'm calling to ask if you'd like to partake in May and Dawn's crazy adventure idea…" he trailed off with a smirk.

"It's not crazy Ash Ketchum!" I heard a voice in the background – Dawn I guessed – as his face wrinkled in a cute squirm.

"Sure…" he turned and murmured quietly, then a pause as something else was mumbled, then he added, "Alright already, I'm asking her!"

He turned back to me sheepishly, and I was wondering what on earth they were talking about.

"So…May and Dawn have been conspiring all morning and have come up with this brilliant idea to go into the mountains near Pallet for a week or so, just to get some R&R and take a break with our Pokemon. And we were wondering if you would like to join us."

My instant reaction was excitement at the prospect of seeing Ash and rejoining him and everyone else on a little adventure. It sounded like a heap of fun. But then, responsibility kicked in.

"Oh Ash, I would just _love_ to come, but I don't think I can leave the Gym… The Annual Gym Leaders Conference is coming up next week and we need to send someone to represent Cerulean City," I was more than disappointed and I'm sure it showed, but he didn't give up.

"Come _on_ Mist, surely your sisters can do it just this once. You _have_ to come, it'll be just like old times. And when was the last time you took a holiday?"

"Well, it _has_ been a while…" I admitted. A very long while.

"Plus…" his voice lowered to a whisper as he glanced behind him, "you can't leave me with those two. They're crazy. They gang up on me."

"And you think I wouldn't join them?" I winked, and he groaned.

"So who else is coming?" I asked, whilst silently going over ways I could convince my sisters to look after the gym andgo to the Gym Leaders Conference. Perhaps I could tell them there would be a heap of hot, handsome men there – Lance, Danny, Rudy, Drake, Falkner, Volkner… It could work.

"Well so far it's May, Dawn, Kenny, Brock and Gary."

"Gary?" I asked in surprise as my eyebrows rose. "Wow, the two of you _are_ best buds these days."

"I wouldn't go that far," Ash smirked, "but he's changed. He's actually an alright guy these days. He even helped us out a few times while we were in Sinnoh."

Gary must have changed a lot for Ash to say that. I hadn't seen Gary in years, but I had heard that he was working in Sinnoh. I guessed he must have been home for the Easter holidays.

I must have been pondering in silence for a while, because Ash grew impatient.

"So what do you say, Mist? You up for it?" his innocently hopeful expression was impossible to resist – not that I even wanted to, and so I gave in easily. With a smile, I nodded my head.

"Well…ok, I'm in. I'll find a way around my sisters, probably with the promise of nice looking young men at the Conference."

"Sounds like a good plan," he chuckled.

"So when do we leave?"

"Three days. The Easter Show starts in Viridian on the weekend, and I promised mum I would spend as much time with her as I could before she goes to that. Brock has gone home for a few days to see his family and will be back Friday afternoon. So, I think we'll set off on Saturday morning. What do you think?"

"That sounds great, Ash. I can't wait!"

"Me neither," he said with a smile – the smile I couldn't wait to see in person in just a few days.

We said goodbye and hung up the phone. The unexpected surprise had filled me with excitement. I hadn't realised how much I needed a break away from the Gym until that moment.

But as I look back now at that exact moment, I know that had I made the opposite decision, my life would be very different. Perhaps in a better way, or perhaps I would be worse off. Perhaps I wouldn't even be here at all… At the time, I thought I was setting off on a fun holiday with my friends to escape the boring daily routines of life.

Little did I know what we would find when we returned, or what our lives would turn into. None of us could have anticipated what we would come up against and what would eventually cost countless lives, including those of some of our closest friends. Physical scars are healing but emotional ones taunt us not only in our dreams, but even while we are awake. We cannot escape from the past just like we cannot escape the haunting memories that it gave us.

I don't know why they chose me to write all this down, but I do agree that we need some sort of recount of what we have been through over the past months. I will try to tell it as best as I can, but I won't hold back. This is the real truth of what we went through, what we did, and why we did it.

This is our story, as told by Misty Waterflower.

_To be continued..._

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**Playlist**

Great Companion – Landon Pigg

We The Dreamers – Kate Voegele

Gravity – Sara Bareilles

Hotblack – Oceanship

From Where You Are – Lifehouse

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**Credits**

Chapter title – 'Great Companion', Landon Pigg

Fanfiction title – 'We Build Then We Break', The Fray


	2. Somewhere Only We Know

**We Build Then We Break**

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Hello my lovely readers! Thank you for your amazing reviews of the last chapter. Reviews make me very happy! They also make me write the next chapter faster. :) Hint, hint! This is quite a long chapter, at 20 pages, so I hope it will entice you and leave you wanting more! At the moment I am only setting up the storyline, but the action is to come, and I promise there will be lots.

I would like to send a special shout-out to WiseAbsol, who always sends me the most incredibly descriptive reviews, which I just love receiving. Thanks a million. :)

I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I have worked tirelessly on this one, especially on getting all the characterisation correct, and I would love to hear what you guys think. No matter how small, your reviews keep me writing and wanting to get better at it. So hit that button and let me know how you're feeling!

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Chapter 1

Somewhere Only We Know

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I arrived at Ash's house on Friday night, just as the sun was disappearing over the horizon, leaving an array of amber streaks across the sky. My eldest sister Daisy had been kind enough to drive me to Pallet Town.

"Well, have a great time, little sister," she smiled with a wink. I wasn't sure what the wink was implying, but I smiled back and leaned in to hug her.

"Now, don't forget to feed the Pokemon three times a day and turn the pool pump on every day to clean it. Every time a trainer comes for a battle you need to enter them into the Pokemon League Trainers System. The instructions are next to the computer. Oh, and also-"

"Misty!" Daisy interrupted me, "You've told me this ten times already. Don't stress, I know what to do. Just relax, and have a good time with your friends. Lily, Violet and I have it covered, I promise!"

I sighed, trying to calm myself. This was the first time I had left the Gym in years, and though I loved my sisters to death, I knew I wouldn't stop worrying about how they were doing, or more likely whether they were actually doing what they were supposed to. But I had more exciting things to think of. I glanced over at Ash's mum's small white house. It still looked the same as it always had, with its colourfully symmetrical garden and white picket fence. Just behind that white door were my friends, and Ash.

"Ok, well I'll see you in seven days."

"Sure thing!"

Daisy waved at me from inside her red sports car as she sped away. I took a deep breath, walked up to the door, and knocked.

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It took only a few moments for the door to swing open, revealing a girl a few years younger than me. Her face lit up in a smile, azure eyes shining, when she saw me.

"Misty!" she squealed, and before I knew it I was engulfed in a hug.

"Hey, May!"

"How are you? How was your trip? I'm so glad you're coming with us! It's been way too long!"

She was speaking way too fast for me to even get a word in, so I just smiled back and nodded appropriately. May certainly looked different from the last time I had seen her. Her long auburn hair hung down her back, while grown out bangs framed her face. Long eyelashes lined her eyes and her defined cheekbones rose and fell as she spoke excitedly. With her petite frame, May had a sort of fragile, natural beauty about her, sort of like a rose, pretty and perfect. I bet she had tonnes of boys after her, but she didn't hold herself as though she knew that. She was humble and focused – probably why she was such a great Coordinator. I had heard a few rumours a while back that she was dating another Coordinator, I think his name was Drew Hayden. But I didn't know if it was true – Coordinators at that level were practically celebrities, and I knew better than to believe the media. Perhaps I would find out during the coming days.

Still chatting, May let me inside the familiar residence, and I put my bag down. Just like the outside, the inside still looked the same as the last time I had been there – homely and comfortable. More trophies sat on the cabinet in the lounge. Mrs Ketchum was sure proud of her son, and rightly so. A wonderful smell came wafting through the hall, and I was glad I hadn't eaten because I wouldn't want to miss any of Mrs Ketchum's amazing cooking!

Obviously having heard all the commotion, a girl I only recognised from television and the videophone approached us. Her hair, pulled back in pigtails, was a little shorter than May's, but was a deep shade of royal blue, just a bit darker than her eyes. I knew she had just celebrated her sixteenth birthday, and her youthful features confirmed that.

"Dawn," I smiled in recognition. "It's nice to finally meet you in person."

"Likewise Misty! This is Piplup," she indicated to the little penguin Pokemon on her shoulder. It waved at me happily.

"Aw, wow, it's so cute!" I petted it and it cooed in satisfaction. I had never seen a Piplup in person, and it was just as adorable as it looked on TV!

In came rushing Mrs Ketchum then, pink apron tied around her waist and her hair in its usual high ponytail. She must have been getting close to turning forty, but the woman, who was like a mother to me, looked at least ten years younger than that.

"Oh, Misty my dear, it's so good to see you!" she threw her arms around me in an embrace, and then pulled back, still holding on to my shoulders.

"And just look at you! You've gotten even more beautiful!"

I felt my cheeks flush in embarrassment at her attention. I knew my looks had changed quite a bit in recent years, but I certainly didn't think I was that pretty.

"Oh…thanks…" I laughed her complement off. "And you don't look like you've aged a day since I last saw you."

A light laughter filled the air as Mrs Ketchum blushed. "Oh, please Misty, you're too kind. Now, I have cooked a special dinner, so I hope you haven't eaten!"

"Nope, I sure haven't!"

A smile graced her face as she returned to the kitchen.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a yellow blur shoot down the staircase. Before I could even react it slammed in to me, almost knocking me over with excited force.

"Pikachu!" I cried happily, hugging the little Pokemon as it babbled in its own language.

"Misty! I heard a familiar voice call out. I glanced up from Pikachu to find Ash and Brock descending the staircase. I couldn't force the silly grin from my face as I saw them in person for the first time in years.

Brock met me in an embrace, his tall, built frame engulfing mine as he greeted me, rubbing my back affectionately. He must have been working out with his Rock Pokemon because he was huge! I was so happy to see him again; he was like a big brother to me and that hadn't changed a bit even after all this time.

He left his arm around my shoulder as he pulled away, leaving me to face Ash. I couldn't wipe the flushed grin from my face as I took his appearance in. He was tall, almost as tall as Brock – over six foot! He was slim but his well-built figure showed through his black t-shirt. His jet black hair was as wild as ever but his eyes were unchanged – they still emanated innocence and kindheartedness, though there was a maturity about the way that he held himself now. I had to make sure to hold myself together as his face lit up in a smile.

"Hey, Mist."

"Hi, Ash," my greeting sounded sort of choked – my stupid voice didn't seem to want to work properly. But before I could worry about it, he swept me up in an embrace, and as he held me, all the feelings I had held for him over the past eight years came crashing to the surface. I didn't know if I wanted to cry or laugh, but I held myself together enough to do neither. Instead I just enjoyed the feeling of having him close. I had dreamed about this moment for too long.

When he pulled away and looked at me with his beautifully innocent eyes, I could feel my cheeks flush embarrassedly.

"Your hair is really long!" he commented, and I laughed, nodding. It was very different from how I used to wear it when we were kids – I usually left it down now, and it had grown out to be quite long. I was flattered that he had noticed.

With a grin, he held his hand up to his forehead and moved it across to meet mine.

"I'm finally taller than you though!" he teased. I rolled my eyes playfully.

"Your hair doesn't count."

He laughed along with the others. Another boy came down the stairs then, one I didn't recognise. He went to stand next to Dawn and put his arm around her affectionately.

"Misty, this is Kenny, Dawn's boyfriend," Ash introduced me to the boy with added emphasis on the boyfriend part, which seemed to embarrass Dawn, who blushed and glared at Ash. Kenny nodded with a kind smile on his young face. His mousy brown hair was quite long and swept across his face in a style that he seemed to pull off nicely. "Kenny, Misty."

"Nice to meet you, Kenny."

"Likewise."

"Kids, dinner is ready!" Mrs Ketchum's voice called from the kitchen.

"Yeah! I'm starving!" Ash and May called almost simultaneously, to which I shook my head in humour as I followed after them. The more things changed, the more they stayed the same.

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As I glanced around the dinner table, I was so glad to be back with my friends. I don't think I had realized how much I missed them as I listened to stories of their travels and adventures and answered questions about my life as Gym Leader. Filled with paperwork, chores and challengers, my life didn't seem half as exciting as theirs. I loved being a Gym Leader but I couldn't deny that travelling was much more fun and exhilarating.

After dinner we sat around the living room, going through our bags and ensuring we had everything we needed.

"Dawn!" May called out as she looked into the younger girl's bag, "Your straightener? Where do you plan to plug it in?"

Dawn grinned sheepishly. "Okay, okay. So I'll leave the straightener. But I'm not leaving my makeup behind."

I snickered at the look on Ash's face as he visibly decided not to go there, and turned to his own bag. It would have been funny to witness Ash travelling with Dawn, who was so feminine and seemingly obsessed with her looks. I bet he had learned a thing or two about girls. I laughed at the thought.

We went through a list of things we needed and checked we had them all. We had all travelled so much that we knew the ins and outs of what we would need. The only person that we didn't see that night was Gary. Ash explained that he was bringing his Jeep and we would take that into the mountains, and park it as far up into the ranges as we could, then walk to the spot they had in mind. Ash and Gary had apparently discovered this secret mountain spot when they were kids, but wanted to go further down into the cavity to where it was completely secluded and private. I was growing more and more excited, and I knew I wouldn't sleep that night.

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Mrs Ketchum set up the guest and living rooms to fit all of us. May and Dawn took the living room while Brock and I took the two single beds in the guest room, next door to Ash's room. I changed into my pyjamas and sat back in the comfortable bed chatting to Brock about how glad we were not to have to sit through the Gym Leaders Conference, when Ash walked in, Pikachu scampering behind him. Pikachu jumped up on to my bed and cuddled in my lap as I stroked its soft fur.

Clad in sweatpants and a black t-shirt, Ash sat on the end of my bed, an impish grin on his face. It was sort of surreal, we three being in the same room again. A wave of nostalgia washed over me. I really missed these people. I really missed my friends.

We chatted for hours about our adventures travelling together, all the good times coupled with the bad ones, and of course, blasting Team Rocket off every day.

"Actually, you know, they haven't shown up in a while," Brock said.

"Really?" I asked, surprised. "I wonder why. Maybe they quit."

"Maybe," Ash nodded, and then added, "Hopefully!"

As I watched Ash speak animatedly, it became obvious just how much he had matured since the last time I had seen him. He was still that innocent, lighthearted, stubborn and brash boy that I had left behind, but he had a new presence about himself, a charisma that commanded your attention, and not only because of his looks, for he had grown to be a respectable and honest person. He sort of reminded me of a young Lance, and I knew that like Lance, he would make a great Pokemon Master.

It was after one in the morning when Ash finally retired to his own room and we tried to get some sleep, but I barely got any. Brock's soft snoring lingered in the air as I contemplated what the week ahead would bring.

Though, I never could have guessed.

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Enthusiasm filled the Ketchum household the next morning as we quickly downed a yummy breakfast of eggs, bacon, pancakes and waffles. We were all eager to start our journey into the mountains. By 9 o'clock we were standing in the front yard, packed and ready to go, and a few minutes later a large black Jeep pulled up in the driveway.

A tall, slim boy with wild chocolate brown hair and stylish black wayfarer sunglasses got out of the vehicle. I blinked in surprise as he approached.

Gary Oak?

I was stunned into silence as he said hello to everyone, and then nodded at me.

"Hi, Misty. Good to see you." I smiled back awkwardly, stupidly and confusedly frozen on the spot. His voice was no longer winy and annoying like I remembered it. In fact, nothing about Gary was the way I remembered him. He had always been good looking, I think – I had never really seen him in that light because he had always been such a jerk. But as he talked and joked with Ash, I could tell he was far from the snide, arrogant boy I had once known. Gary stood just a centimetre or so taller than Ash and wore fashionable cargo pants and a black t-shirt that, coupled with his expensive looking sunglasses, made him seem too classy to be going camping. He had a sort of brooding, thoughtful and mysterious look about him that made him seem older than he actually was. I shook my head inwardly, mentally trying to un-freeze my jammed thoughts. I was totally confused. What had I just felt, and why?

There wasn't time to contemplate anything though, as we hugged Mrs Ketchum goodbye and piled into the Jeep.

May took a CD out of her bag and handed it to Gary.

"Here Gary, put this on."

He put the CD into the player and cranked the volume up. Gary started the car up and we waved goodbye to Pallet Town and made our way towards the mountains.

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We drove through the residential town of Pallet and out into the forest that surrounded it, travelling through the shady green area, until we reached the foot of the mountains. All the time we laughed, joked and sang along to the songs on May's CD. Gary's four-wheel-drive easily maneuvered the rocky road up the mountains. The forest got denser as we got higher, and about halfway up we reached the end of the path.

"Well, looks like this is as far as the car can take us," Gary remarked, glancing around at his surroundings.

"So, where to from here?" May asked.

"Can we stop for a snack? I'm starving," Ash added. It had only been an hour since we'd eaten breakfast.

"Same here!" May agreed, and Dawn and I glanced at each other, eyebrows raised, and chuckled. I never thought I would meet anyone as food-obsessed as Ash, but May had proven me wrong.

"Alright, let's get out and have a look around, plan where we're going to go, and then we can eat," Gary explained sensibly, un-clasping his seatbelt. In the back seat, Brock nodded.

"Great idea."

One by one, we hopped out of the Jeep and were met by the fresh, cool air of the mountains. I breathed it in as I stretched my legs, glad to be out of the squishy car.

"Wow," Dawn, who was standing on the edge of the road, breathed. I walked over to her with May and the others close behind me, to find one of the most breathtaking views I had ever seen.

We could see for miles and miles, an endless stretch of blue sky met by the small settlement of Pallet Town, then the large green mass that was the Viridian Forest, and everything that lay between. Much of the area around Pallet was sparse farmland, which from here looked like swirls of earthy colours mixed with more hues of green than were identifiable on a colour chart.

"You can see everything from here," May remarked.

"Yeah, it sure is a great view, right Pikachu?" Ash added, his dark hair dancing in motion with the breeze. On his shoulder, Pikachu cooed in approval.

Putting his hands on his hips, Gary surveyed the area.

"I'm sure if we go up that way for about two-hundred metres, we'll come to a path that leads us down the centre of the mountains," he pointed to an old, dusty path lined by trees and bushes, which led up the mountain. "Does that seem right to you, Ash?" he glanced around at Ash, who was busy stuffing his face with a Cherry Ripe bar.

"Uh...yeah, that looks right!" he replied after looking up at the spot Gary was pointing to.

"Where will we leave the car?" I asked.

Gary glanced around some more in silence until he finally came up with an answer.

"Around there," he indicated to a spot just around the corner from the path, in between a cluster of large, shady trees. It would be hidden and shady from the warm sun during the day. "I could drive it in there."

We all agreed wholeheartedly with Gary's plan, and after we had had a little snack and break, we got busy unpacking our things from the Jeep.

"We should leave what we won't need urgently here, so we won't be too loaded down if it's really hard to get down into the Valley," I suggested as I took my backpack from the car.

Across from me, Gary nodded. "Good idea. Only take the urgent things for now. We can come back and get more if we need it."

Fifteen minutes later, and after a few arguments about what food to take and what to leave, we were ready. My idea to leave some food behind in case we were total pigs and ran out of it in a few days was frowned upon at first, but eventually my argument won. It would save someone a long trip back to Pallet if we did run out, rather than a short trip back to the car.

With our backpacks on our backs, we took to the path and started the climb up the mountain. It was steep but manageable as we navigated through the thick tree growth. Eventually we reached a small, flat clearing that looked as though its only option from there was an extremely steep path further up the mountain – way too steep to climb. But Gary was already investigating an area to the right of where we were standing.

"Here it is!" he exclaimed, an undertone of excitement in his deep voice.

We all scrambled to the spot where he was standing, pointing down into a thick growth of trees and shrubs. As we peered through it and cleared some of the growth away, we discovered a narrow, concealed path leading back down the mountain and around into an area we couldn't see. It was totally secret, you wouldn't be able to find it if you hadn't discovered it by accident.

"I can't believe it's still here," Ash remarked, golden brown eyes dancing with enthusiasm.

"So...you and Gary found this when you were kids?" Dawn asked.

"Sure did," Ash nodded, and then his eyebrows creased as he remembered, "Well, actually, Gary pushed me and I fell into it. That's how we discovered it."

Gary laughed as he recalled the memory. "That's right. You were such a weak kid," he taunted mischievously. Ash shot him a look of annoyance.

"And you were such a bully."

Gary laughed and brushed off his comment, either accepting or ignoring it. I couldn't believe how much things had changed between the two of them. They were more like brothers now than rivals.

As we gazed down into the narrow path between the undergrowth, a sense of excitement was building within our group. We were nearly there, in this secret place where we would be promised a week of total relaxation. Though the walk up the steep path thus far had tired us slightly, we weren't letting it get in the way; excitement flooded our veins as we prepared to take the next little journey.

Brock and Kenny held open the undergrowth enough for us to fit through it one by one. Once we were all through, they followed. We could only stay in single file through the narrow corridor of trees and shrubbery. It was cool and damp as the path led on a downward slant, and the sun disappeared completely as we got to a sudden elbow in the path, leading us to the left – another corridor of trees. In single file we followed Ash and Gary, the air silent except for the far-off chirping of Pidgey and the twittering of insects. I hoped like hell that they were far off too. In this confined space, I would have nowhere to run from any gross, slimy bugs that decided to cross my path. I took a deep breath and tried not think about that as I kept walking. I could smell water, so I figured there must be a creek around somewhere.

Eventually the path widened and flattened out, and finally we could see light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak.

When we came out of the tunnel of thick undergrowth, what we found sort of astounded us into silence and utters of 'wow' and 'whoa'.

It had led us into a beautiful clearing, sheltered by the rocks that lined the mountains above us. Lush green grass covered the area mixed with a dirt path that led all the way around the clearing. Great greyish-brown rocks, like badly arranged steps clung to by vines and smothered in moss surrounded us on all sides, lined with trees stretching over to make a sort of canopy. Above us, the rocks cleared for a bit, giving us an incredible view of the blue sky that I bet would look amazing when it darkened to night and all the stars appeared. Leading from the right hand side was a small creek that widened into a large river, running hidden through the clearing and then into a shallow crevice on the left. I wondered if it led to another secret clearing and was excited at the prospect of exploring! The water in the river looked fresh, clean and very enticing after our tiring walk down here. The area was large and sparse and would give us all plenty of space whilst still keeping us together.

I felt it amazing that no one had come across this beautiful space, hidden and unchanged by anything but nature, and as we stood watching it in awe we made an unspoken vow to keep it that way. We wouldn't destroy it, just borrow it for a while. It was our own exclusive place, and I already knew it was special. Nothing could touch or find us here.

"I knew it," Gary said quietly as he glanced around. I hadn't noticed but sometime while we were in the tunnel he had removed his sunglasses. For a few moments my voice seemed to catch in my throat as his dark brown eyes caught mine. A maturity was present within the chocolate pools of his eyes, which also seemed to be holding back something, like he only let people see a part of him, like there was a whole other person lurking inside him that was undiscovered. Or maybe a part he kept hidden. Suddenly aware that I was staring, I tore my eyes away from his, hoping like mad he hadn't noticed. Suddenly that water looked even more enticing. All that clammy, damp air was obviously screwing with my brain.

The excitement of the place pulsated through us as we took it in, and suddenly, we weren't young adults, but children again, simply wanting to splash around in the water and go exploring. In a few minutes we had flung our bags to the ground, eager to have some fun. We pulled out our Poke Balls and let our Pokemon free – out came Ash's Torterra, Infernape, Staraptor, Buizel and Gible, Brock's Sudowoodo, Croagunk and Happiny, May's Blaziken, Glaceon, Wartortle, Venusaur, Munchlax and Beautifly, Dawn's Buneary, Pachirisu, Mamoswine, Cyndaquil and Togekiss, Gary's Electivire, Umbreon, Blastoise and Dodrio, Kenny's Empoleon, Alakazam, Breloom, Machoke and Floatzel, and my own Azurill, Corsola, Gyarados, Psyduck, Politeod and Starmie. Happy to be out of their Poke Balls and see all of their old friends, they reunited with one-another and went to explore the area. Thankfully, we had decided to wear our bathers underneath our clothes, knowing we would probably be in this situation. I took my black tank top off to reveal my favourite royal blue bikini, and ran towards the water still wearing my denim cutoffs. Dawn was right behind me in a pink one-piece with little white bows on the straps, hand-in-hand with Kenny, who ran into the water with her, splashing her as she laughed heartily. I had to admit, they were a pretty cute couple.

The cool water was exhilarating as I walked into it, and then knee-deep, looked back. I almost did a double-take as I caught site of Gary walking toward me, clad in nothing but a pair of black board shorts. His muscular torso and shaped arms were like something you saw in an advertisement for Calvin Klein. This time, he caught me staring, and his mouth turned up into an awkward but coy smile. Cursing to myself, I glanced away feverishly and then noticed Ash coming up behind him with Brock in tow. I smirked at Gary, pretending I was looking at Ash instead, but I don't know if he bought it. Meanwhile, Ash ran toward me and before I knew it, sprinkles of water were coming towards me, glistening in the sunlight from above. Not one to be outdone, I splashed back, and that started an all-out splash war. I was in the middle of carrying out an attack on Ash, when he turned away, causing a bucket-load of water to be dunked over his head. Laughing, I stood back to admire my work, but my smile soon faded when I caught site of the person in Ash's direct line of sight – May.

Walking toward us was the brunette, her peachy-white skin luminous against her red bikini. She hadn't noticed Ash staring, but rather her shy, awkward gaze was directed to the ground while he gawked at her as though he had never seen a woman in a bikini before. Nobody else seemed to notice the moment except me. As May approached me I realised I was probably being totally obvious, and I diverted my gaze over to the others, who were trying to get Dawn's hair – which she had masterfully put up in a high bun on her head – wet.

"This place is so beautiful. It's like our own private sanctuary," May came up next to me, glancing around at our incredible surroundings. She seemed to have no idea that Ash had been totally fixated on her a few seconds ago. Or maybe she did, and she was a very good actress. I wasn't sure, but I was sure that a wave of shock was overtaking me. Did Ash like May? I was almost too afraid to think of the possibility. Ash was my best friend, and I'd had a crush on him for eight years. Eight long years of longing for him to notice me as something other than his tomboyish friend, and suddenly the possibility of him feeling the same way as me was very small. I was sort of crushed as this realisation washed over me like a devastating Surf attack, leaving heartbreak and hurt in its wake.

I realised I had not answered May's question, and nodded.

"Sure is."

"Are you okay Misty?" her azure eyes seemed to study me. "It seems like you have a lot on your mind."

"Uh…no, I'm fine. Just kind of taken aback by how beautiful this place is," it was a stupid response, but she didn't argue, instead accepting my explanation with a nod and turning her head to see if Dawn needed any help. By the sound of her squeals, she did, and with a giggle she waded out to her friend to either help or hinder her efforts to not get her hair wet.

My thoughts were littered with confusing thoughts and feelings, and suddenly I didn't feel like joining in the game. I walked back to shore to find Gary sitting on the bank of the river. When I approached, he looked up at me with his chocolate eyes. They seemed to elude that he knew something I didn't, or like he could read my secret thoughts. I looked back at him awkwardly and sat beside him so I wouldn't have to see his eyes.

"I thought she would have given up by now," Gary spoke of Dawn, a slight chuckle present in his tone.

I let out a small laugh, but couldn't really think of anything to say while I waded through my thoughts about what I had just discovered.

When I was younger, I used to act all tough and mean to disguise how I was really feeling about Ash, when all along it was my doubts about myself that really held me back from telling him. But now, I thought I had everything figured out. By now, Ash would have grown up enough to not be totally clueless about girls and relationships. He would realise how much we had in common and how perfect we were together, and we would start our relationship and live happily ever after. Ok, well, not that last part – I never really believed in fairytales. I wasn't that naive. But I did believe in Ash and me. I had for so long that I had never questioned it, just always thought it was fate, or destiny, or something… But suddenly, eight years of hopes and feelings had come into question. There was a possibility that Ash didn't feel the same way, that he never would, because he felt that way about someone else…about May… So where did that leave me?

"So how is the Gym Leader life, Misty?" I was so enveloped in my analysis of my current predicament that Gary's question sort of shocked me.

"Uh…um…" I stammered, and he glanced over at me with a sort of smug look on his face. I soon pulled myself together. I didn't want him to think I was a dreamer.

"It's great," I spoke clearly this time, "I love representing Cerulean City. I don't think it could ever replace the fun and excitement of travelling, though."

He nodded, thoughtful for a few moments before he spoke again. "I agree. Travelling is great. You travelled with Ash for years, why did you stop?"

I raised my eyebrows as I realised that we really didn't know one another that well, despite being acquaintances for years.

"It's kind of a long story…" He didn't seem to mind, just shrugged, glancing at me.

"I've got time."

"Ok, well, see…before I met Ash I had sort of…run away from home."

"A runaway? That's kind of hot," he remarked with a mischievous grin that seemed to light up his eyes. Not expecting the comment, my cheeks turned red before I could stop myself. He seemed to have got the reaction he wanted though, and I made a mental note not to let him better me again. Obviously no matter how much he had changed, Gary Oak was still Gary Oak.

"Anyways, I was on my way to becoming a Water Pokemon Master, when I sort of ran into Ash. Well, he ran into me actually, and he destroyed my bike. So I followed him around for four years until he repaid me."

"Typical Ash. He does something stupid and gets a girl like you following him around," he'd said it with humour, but I was immediately taken aback. What was that supposed to mean? My eyebrows narrowed but he only laughed it off.

"So he repaid you, and you left?"

"Sort of, but not really," I thought about how sad and angry I had been that day I had been forced to abandon my travels and return home. "My sisters called to tell me they were going on an overseas holiday and they needed me to look after the Gym, and I did get my bike back. After that I just sort of became Gym Leader, and that's what I've been doing ever since. My sisters were never really into the job. They're more interested in doing their water ballet shows and being famous."

Gary nodded in silence. He seemed very interested in my story and I couldn't quite work out why.

"So how about you? How is your research going?" I thought I should ask a question – that and I was tired of talking about myself.

"It's amazing. I discover new things every day. I just got back from working in Sinnoh with Professor Rowan."

"So that's where you met up with Ash again?" I sighed inwardly. Everything came down to Ash.

"Yeah, sure is."

"I'm sort of surprised to find the two of you as friends."

"Yeah, well, he's not too bad of a person. I feel sort of bad for the way I used to treat him."

"You were kind of a jerk," I uttered truthfully, and he turned towards me as if to argue, but then backed down. He really had changed, and for the better.

"At least you egged him on though. He probably wouldn't have gotten so far, so fast if he wasn't trying to keep up with you."

Gary seemed to think about this for a few seconds before replying, "heh, I guess you're sort of right about that."

Well fell into a silence then that wasn't exactly uncomfortable, but wasn't relaxed either. It was strange. I never in a million years thought I would be having a quiet conversation with Gary Oak.

The others came in from the water, all laughing except Dawn, who was wringing her hair out with an irritated look on her face.

"Piplup, can you please fix this?" she begged her little penguin Pokemon. One Bubble attack later and her hair was as good as new. I wondered why I had never thought of that!

"Wow Dawn, that's really cool!" May was impressed by Piplup's talents as well.

It was getting late, and as the sun slowly dropped and the sky grew darker, we were starting to get hungry again.

"Why don't I cook some of my famous special stew?" Brock offered. I was so thankful to have Brock with us – if it weren't for him I'm sure we would have been having Iced VoVo's and Tim Tam's for dinner. (A/N: a shout out to my fellow Aussie readers. :))

* * *

Brock started preparing dinner while the rest of us got busy going through our things to set up for the night. We had brought tents with us, but it was warm enough that we would be okay sleeping outside under the beautiful view of the sky. Ash, Gary and Kenny started a fire, which was nice since the air was getting cooler as it got darker, and we set up our sleeping bags in a circle around it.

By the time we were eating Brock's amazing dinner, the sky was the colour of navy blue and the stars were shining like brilliant white diamonds against it. When you live in the city you forget how amazing the stars really look. The view was breathtaking. After dinner we sat around the fire toasting marshmallows and chatting. Dawn leaned against Kenny contentedly as he put his arms around her. The two seemed to work so perfectly together, like they were made for one-another. My thoughts drifted to Ash, and I snuck a look at him as he spoke about battle against Paul at the Sinnoh League Competition. The light of the fire made his golden eyes dance and sparkle as he spoke excitedly about the battle. Across from him, May hung on his every word. My stomach fluttered uncomfortably. I think I knew, at that moment, that I had no chance with Ash. I was ninety-nine percent positive that what was unspoken between Ash and May was serious – was love. At the time, though, I just couldn't accept it. I had loved Ash for so long that I knew nothing else. I never even looked at another guy; there was never anyone else for me but Ash Ketchum. I fell silent, dropping out of the conversation as I tried to figure out what to do with this realisation. The low murmurs of the others were just background noise as I stared into the fire, as if hoping it would give me all the answers.

A few moments later I felt eyes on me, and when I looked up I found Gary's dark eyes peering into mine from across the fire. He wasn't speaking, just watching me with a look on his face that I could not decipher. Feeling awkward and uncomfortable under his gaze, I looked away. I felt like he was trying to read my mind, and I didn't like it. I didn't like being analysed. It made me feel self-conscious, and that was a feeling I seldom felt around boys. I knew who I was, and nobody could make me doubt myself. But Gary's intense stare seemed to make me do just that… With Ash it had been different. I never felt like I had to prove myself to him – I was who I was, and I knew I had my flaws, but he accepted them. I always felt comfortable around him; no matter how many times he joked about my tomboyish style or general scrawniness, I knew he accepted me for who I was. But now I felt distinctly aware of myself, and I wondered what Gary thought as he looked at me. Did he think I was pretty, unattractive, strange, tomboyish? The uncertainty was killing me. I supposed that this was why girls like my sisters always made such an effort with their looks. They just wanted guys to look at them and think they were beautiful. I never bothered with any of that preconceived junk. Don't get me wrong – I wanted to look and feel beautiful like every other girl. But I wanted to look and feel beautiful for myself, not for other people, and certainly not for boys. My feeling was that if a guy judged you just by looks they weren't worth getting to know. My sisters thought I was crazy, but they had given up trying to change my opinion. I was different from them – the black sheep of the family. While they took after my mother's beautiful, flowery persona, I inherited my father's strength and strong-will. Though, I liked to think I had a bit of both.

"This place is so great," May's soft voice brought me out of my reverie. The others fell silent as they took in our beautiful surroundings. "We should do this again, make it a regular thing."

"Definitely," Dawn agreed. "Once a year, no matter what is happening in our lives, we should come back here together."

"Agreed," Ash said with a smile, and the others nodded their agreement in return. I offered my own smile and nod and it was settled. I truly hoped that we would keep that promise. I knew that as we got older and took different paths we were all sure to drift apart – it was only natural. Life was easy now that we were young and (mostly) free, but it was sure to be filled with more and more responsibility as we got older. Our promise was comforting, reassuring – it meant that our friendship wouldn't fall apart.

I fell asleep pretty quickly that night, exhausted from our trek into the mountains. I wasn't as fit as I had been when I was travelling. I gazed up at the stars, listening to the soft chatter of my friends as they did the same, until my eyes closed and sleep took over.

* * *

I awoke the next morning feeling refreshed. The mountain air was fresh and invigorating. The smell of sausages wafted through the air as I sat up, and I suddenly realised I was starving. I crawled out of my sleeping bag just as May was doing the same. Even as she just woke up she looked beautiful, immaculate…

"Morning, Misty!" she smiled brightly. "How did you sleep?"

I sighed inwardly. Despite the fact that I would love to hate her for being the obvious object of Ash's affection, May was the type of girl you just couldn't dislike. She was perfect in every way and yet she seemed unaware of that – for she was as down to earth and kind as anyone.

"Great," I replied as I stretched. "How about you?"

"Same here," she answered. "But…I'm starving."

I couldn't help but giggle at her emphasis of the word. She was so much like Ash that it was scary. Perhaps that was why they seemed meant for one another. Ash and I were complete opposites. Could it have ever worked between us? I supposed I would probably never know…

We made our way over to the others, who were helping Brock to cook breakfast – except Dawn, who was trying in vain to brush her knotted hair.

"Want me to braid it?" May offered, and Dawn accepted the offer gratefully as May got to work on her royal blue tresses.

By the time they were done, we were biting into sausages and eggs and bacon. It tasted amazing in the cool morning air. The sun was already out, promising another beautiful day.

I had every intention, that day, of exploring further into the mountains, checking out what other crevices and hidden spots I could find. But I ended up laying around with the others lazily, letting our Pokemon roam free as we sunbaked and chatted and discussed life outside our little world. The day passed quickly and I felt I had achieved nothing, but it didn't bother me. It was great not to have to worry about or remember to do anything! I was enjoying my freedom more than I thought I would.

* * *

I helped Brock cook dinner that night – I had gotten quite good at cooking since living at the Gym. As we cooked he spoke about his plans for the future.

"I think I'm actually going to head back to Pewter City and set up my own Breeding Centre."

"Really? That's great, Brock. So you've had enough of travelling for now?"

"I mean, I would love to keep travelling with Ash but I'm getting to the stage where I want to settle down and start working on making my dream a reality."

I nodded, understanding.

"Ash will really miss you," I glanced over at our raven-haired friend, who was sitting on the river bank, watching the Pokemon play in the water with a warm smile on his face.

"Yeah, but he's grown up a lot. He doesn't need me anymore. I think I've done everything I can for him now. He needs to go forth and forge his own path. And I know he can do it."

"Sure he can," I looked back to Brock. "But I think he'll miss your cooking."

Brock laughed heartily.

"Well, I'll just have to give him some of my recipes. But enough about me, how is the Gym? Are you still liking the job?"

"Yeah, I love it," I replied truthfully, though I was lost in thought about Ash, and what an incredible person he was, and the fact that I would probably never get to be with him the way I wanted to… At least, how I thought I wanted to. I was starting to doubt my feelings, and I was getting more and more confused. Brock must have tuned in to my unease.

"You okay Misty? You haven't seemed like yourself since we got here."

I snapped out of it pretty quickly. Brock was so perceptive, and I am sure he knew about my feelings for Ash, but he had never asked me directly, and I didn't want him to pick up on what was going on – especially because I didn't really know myself.

"Yeah, of course! I've just been thinking about my sisters and the Gym. It's the first time I've left it for years."

"I'm sure they're fine. You shouldn't worry." I nodded, glad I had covered that one up. But Brock gave me a look, and I knew that he knew more than he let on. Thankfully, he didn't press the issue any further.

* * *

We served dinner and sat around the fire afterward. Once again the stars shone down upon us from above. I would miss their beauty when we left this place.

"So Ash, how come you didn't want to go to the Show?" Dawn asked. The Show was a Kanto tradition; it travelled around to all of the major cities annually and it was a big deal, an event attended by everyone. Viridan City's Show was the biggest of all the other cities, and it always came at Easter. None of the other regions had an event in comparison.

Ash groaned, "I could think of nothing worse. My mum used to drag me there every year, and all we did was look at cakes that I wasn't allowed to eat!"

We all laughed at the thought of little Ash in a room-full of decorated cakes not being able to eat any of them.

"Is your mum entering anything this year?" Brock asked.

"Oh yeah," Ash looked suddenly afraid. "I couldn't even go past the door of her 'cake' room. She nearly bit my head off when I did."

I bet she did, I thought with a chuckle. Mrs Ketchum was sweet but you didn't mess with her. It was one of the reasons I respected her so much.

"What else do they have there, besides cake?" Kenny asked.

"They have amusement rides and food and markets and all kinds of other stuff. There is a huge Ferris Wheel and Dodgem Cars…"

"Ash's favourite ride was the Magikarp Merry Go Round," Gary said with a smirk.

"Was not!" Ash shot back in protest, and we were all trying not to burst into laughter. Ash was just too easy to taunt, as Gary knew all too well.

As the boys delved into a conversation about Trainer versus Coordinator battles, I turned to May and Dawn. Beside me, Piplup sat patiently.

"Your Piplup looks really healthy and strong, Dawn. You've done an amazing job raising it."

"You think so?" Dawn seemed oddly enchanted by my complement.

"Of course," I reached over to pet it gently, "but, how come it doesn't stay in its Poke Ball?"

Dawn sighed, "I don't know. It just doesn't like it in there. I think it got jealous of Pikachu being outside all the time and wanted to copy. That's okay though. I kind of like having it with me."

"Same with Eevee before it evolved," May added. I nodded.

"Ash says you're a Water Pokemon expert," Dawn explained, and I felt myself flush with flattery.

"He did?"

"Yeah, he must really respect you."

"Too bad he never acts like it!"

"Well, that's Ash for ya. He's totally clueless. But he's getting better, I think," Dawn said, glancing over to him. I laughed in agreement.

"So Dawn, you and Kenny are really cute together," I said, and Dawn blushed.

"Oh, thanks… He's a really sweet guy."

"They were childhood friends," May explained. "Isn't that adorable?"

"He can be a pain," Dawn glanced over to her boyfriend, "but I really love him. I know he would do anything for me…" she trailed off, her eyes sparkling dreamily.

"You're really lucky…" May smiled, but something in the depths of her eyes changed, like she was visiting a place she didn't want to.

"May…" Dawn put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You're going to have to talk to me about him sometime."

I was totally puzzled. Talk about whom?

"I know…" May sighed, looking down for a few seconds before meeting our expressions – Dawn's concerned and mine confused. "It's just really hard to think about him after…that."

"Of course it is, but you have to talk about it to be able to heal, right? And I bet Misty can give you some advice," she indicated to me, and I nodded, though not knowing what I was giving advice to.

May only nodded, but her lips remained pursed as she remained silent. Finally, she gave in, and spoke.

"It's just…stupid because he was the one that chased me. But in the end, he only wanted the chase. Once he had me, he was bored, and then when I caught him with her… It made me feel totally irrelevant, like I wasn't good enough for him."

I was stunned to say the least. I assumed May was talking about this Drew guy who I'd heard she was dating. This idiot had cheated on her? She seemed so sweet and innocent. I had no idea that she was carrying such a burden upon her shoulders, that she had been hurt so cruelly.

"May, he is the jerk for doing that to you. His stupid ass wasn't good enough for you, more like it," Dawn was getting fired up, but I was in total agreement with her.

"Yeah May, and do you know what? He isn't even worth the time thinking about it. I know you must feel terrible, but you're better than him, and you don't need people like him in your life."

May nodded, but tears were gathering with great force in her blue eyes, sparkling with the light of the fire. She wiped them away furiously as the first few fell.

"Sorry, I don't want to cry anymore tears over him, but I just feel so used. I thought he really loved me, you know? Then to find out like that, that he really didn't care at all, well…it just…hurts."

Dawn leaned forward and embraced the quietly weeping May, who accepted her care thankfully. When Dawn pulled away May wiped her eyes free of tears and smiled.

"Thanks, guys. I know it will stop hurting soon. I think me being out here and away from that world is just what I needed."

We both nodded in concurrence, and I made a mental note then and there to keep a closer eye on May. She was really hurting. She had ingenuously let this Drew person into her life, and she trusted him with her heart, but he had taken it and shattered it, leaving her broken and despaired while he probably felt no remorse. I had seen my sister Lily go through the same thing a few years ago, and I think it still affects her to this day. I hoped that May would be able to love again, even if the person she loved was Ash. No doubt, he would never hurt her…

As if he had taken a cue from my thoughts, Ash was suddenly standing in front of us, a perplexed and perturbed look upon his face. He glanced from May, to Dawn, to me, and then said, "Is everything okay?"

I glanced at May, who shot us both a look, silently conveying the message not to tell Ash anything.

"Yup, all good," I piped up, shooting Ash a grin. "Just girl talk, you know, makeup, hair, shopping..."

"Right..." Ash held up his hands, a sheepish grin on his face, and backed away, but not before shooting May a look that I didn't quite understand.

When he was at a safe distance, May let her fake smile fall.

"Thanks," she acknowledged Dawn and I. "He knows about it, but he's really worried about me. I told him I was fine. I don't want him to worry anymore."

I glanced back over at Ash while Dawn put a comforting arm around May's shoulder. He was trying to hide the fact that he was peering at May, whispering to Pikachu softly, his brow creased in concern. Ash was certainly protective over May. I already knew that; I had witnessed it while I spent time travelling with them, but I discovered then, from the look in his eyes, that it went deeper than that.

* * *

I spent an hour tossing and turning that night, unable to fall asleep like the others, before I got up and walked over to the river bank. I sat on the soft sand and looked out onto the water, with the stars reflecting onto it like glitter, hoping it would give me all the answers. I felt lost; everything I had ever believed in was in doubt. Did I ever love Ash in the first place, or was it just a feeling I wanted to feel, because it gave me something to hope for? I had felt this way for so, so long – eight years of loving him and wanting nothing more than to be with him. Without him, I didn't really know who I was or what I wanted. It was sort of sad, really.

I was almost positive that he had feelings for May. It was in the way he looked at her, the way he was always near her, felt the need to protect her. It was every way I wanted him to feel about me. But that would never happen now… And where did that leave me?

I was so caught up wandering through my maze of thoughts that I physically jumped when I heard a voice behind me.

"Can't sleep?"

I whipped around. The quiet voice belonged to Gary. He looked sort of apologetic for startling me.

"N-no," I replied, and he moved to sit beside me. His handsome face was serious in the moonlight, dark eyes shimmering from the water's reflection.

"You either?"

"Nah," shook his head slightly. "I have weird sleeping patterns because of my research. Sometimes I'm up all day, sometimes all night."

"Wow, that must throw you out."

"You get used to it," he shrugged. I nodded and turned back to the water.

We fell into a comfortable silence, listening to the sounds of the mountains, the trickle of water and the distant calls of Pokemon.

"Can I ask you a question, Misty?" his voice seemed to linger on my name as it trailed off into the stillness.

His eyes sort of captured me then, as they peered in to mine. I felt like he could see right through me – every thought, every desire, every dream and wish. There was a mystery in them that I couldn't decipher, and it made me nervous. Apprehension rose within me, uncontrollable and puzzling. I never felt this way around guys, but Gary seemed to have some sort of power over me.

"Um…okay…" I finally spoke, though the words came out hesitantly.

"You have feelings for Ash, don't you?"

The question sent me into a spiral, stunning me. I was completely taken aback for a few seconds and I felt my face flush embarrassedly. How did he know? I thought I kept my thoughts and feelings more well-hidden. Just how obvious was I? Did everyone know?

His face remained serious, though a sparkle in his eye made me feel like he was sort of enjoying seeing me squirm.

"I…" unable to get any words out, I was feeling more and more like an idiot. Finally, after what seemed like hours but which was probably only seconds, I managed to speak.

"Why would you think that?" A question for a question – it seemed fair, considering he had caught me so off guard!

He chuckled quietly, and if I wasn't feeling so apprehensive I probably would have hit him. But his laughter faded quickly and his face turned serious once more.

"I have noticed the way you look at him. You get this dreamy look in your eyes," I found it sort of intimidating that he was so observant. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," he added, and I knew that there was no point denying it, because he already knew the truth. What was the point?

"So…you like him…but he likes May, is that how it is? Is that why you've been so distant?"

A surge of anger waved through me.

"You don't even know me, Gary, so don't pretend like you know how I'm feeling," I snapped, and he looked sort of taken aback, but he remained calm, still, pensive. Anger was building up inside me; I felt like I was experiencing a Rage attack, but he seemed either unafraid or unaware. That just made me angrier.

"So you admit it then?"

He had backed me into a corner so easily, and he wasn't giving up.

"Why do you even care?"

He didn't get a chance to answer my anger-fueled question, because a few seconds later a deep rumbling could be heard in the distance. I tensed up, instantly believing it to be an earthquake. It was so loud compared to the still silence that had held us moments before. Choked in fright, I braced for the pressure of the shaking earth, but it never came. Eyes wide, I turned to Gary, who was glancing around as well, his dark eyes sharp and focused. Moments later the source of the rumbling came into view. Above us, three lines of black jets zoomed past us, so fast they were only in view for a second or two. There were hundreds of them, zipping through the midnight sky like darts, menacing and ominous, like mechanical ravens. This lasted for a good fifteen minutes. All the while Gary and I sat there, rendered speechless as we watched them zoom by. When the last one flew by, and a faint buzzing was all that was left in the air, I breathed a sigh of alarm.

"That was weird. What were they?"

A look of trepidation was vivid within Gary's features, his eyes dark with questioning concern. But that faded slightly as he seemed to come to some sort of conclusion.

"Probably for the Show," he said. "They usually have air shows."

"Oh," I nodded, but I had a feeling in the pit of my stomach, a feeling that he was wrong. That seemed like a lot of planes for an air show. There had to be hundreds of them, maybe a thousand. It didn't seem right, but I didn't question Gary. For one, I was glad for the distraction away from our conversation.

I stood, deciding to go to bed to avoid him bringing the topic up again, even though I was even more wide-awake than before.

I tiptoed quietly around the others, noticing with sadness that Ash had fallen asleep facing May, a smile on his innocently peaceful face. I couldn't believe that none of them had awoken from the noise of the planes. I crawled into my sleeping bag and wrapped it around myself, holding on to it as though begging it for comfort. I tried to sleep but my thoughts kept me awake into the night. Though Gary's explanation for the planes had been plausible, something just didn't sit right with me. But I told myself I was being paranoid, and focused on my other problem.

Gary somehow knew how I felt about Ash. I was sure that the conversation would arise again, and I would have to be prepared. I wouldn't let him catch me off guard again. But more than my wondering about how he knew – I figured he was just very perceptive – I wondered why he even bothered to ask. I let my guard down for a few seconds to really think about it. Gary was clever, but he didn't seem devious. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was asking because he cared. But that couldn't be. There was no way Gary Oak would care about me, and I wasn't even sure that I wanted him to.

I thought back over the past few days to my reaction to seeing him. It was something I had never experienced before. My heart had never beat so fast and my stomach had never felt so littered with nervous butterflies upon seeing him or talking to him. With Ash I was always in control, though my feelings for him often made me feel slightly nervous and uneasy around him, he never made me feel intimidated like Gary did. Gary was so different from Ash – they were like polar opposites. Where Ash was cute and charming and brash and just plain kindhearted, Gary was mysterious, thoughtful and intelligent, while also being charismatic and fascinating. I felt tense and uneasy around him, and very aware of myself in a way I had never felt around another guy. But what did this all mean?

Frustrated anger was gripping me as I tried to sort through all of this in my head. I was just learning that the feelings I had felt for Ash for the past eight years were now pretty much irrelevant, and at the same time I was having these weird and undecipherable feelings about Gary Oak, of all people, who for some reason seemed intent on playing games with me. And on that note, why was he doing this? Surely he couldn't like me. I sighed to myself. Why did I always think I wasn't good enough? It was an opinion inbuilt into me from all those years of being told so by my sisters, though I know now they didn't mean it. I was tough, but I wasn't invincible. I never acted like it affected me but it did. How could it not? Still, the possibility of Gary liking me seemed strange. He seemed better suited to a movie star or a model. I felt plain and boring – a tomboyish, Water Pokemon nerd. It was almost funny, thinking about Gary and I as a couple, and yet somewhere inside me, some kind of inkling or feeling was floating around, not letting me disallow the thought from my head. It stayed there all night while I attempted sleep, until I awoke the next morning feeling like I had involuntarily ridden an emotional roller-coaster.

Unfortunately though, I had figured out nothing besides what I already knew, which was three things:

Ash loved May, and not me;

I just might have feelings for Gary Oak; and

Nothing was as it w

* * *

as supposed to be.

I felt like my whole world was falling apart.

Little did I know that in five more days, it actually would.

* * *

_To be continued…

* * *

_

**May's Road Mix**

1. Ours - The Bravery

2. Who's To Say - Vanessa Carlton

3. Airplanes - B.o.B feat. Haley Williams

4. Eclipse (All Yours) - Metric

5. The Only Exception - Paramore

6. Starlight - Muse

7. Sweet Disposition - The Temper Trap

8. Halfway Gone - Lifehouse

9. Friends - Band Of Skulls

10. Times Like These (Acoustic) - Foo Fighters

11. Uprising - Muse

12. Houses - Great Northern

13. Angel - Kate Voegele

14. 23 - Jimmy Eat World

15. Supermassive Black Hole - Muse

16. Great Companion - Landon Pigg

17. Light Outside - Wakey!Wakey!

18. Bulletproof - La Roux

19. Undisclosed Desires - Muse

20. Light Surrounding You - Evermore

21. My Delirium - Ladyhawke

22. I Believe In You (Acoustic) - Tyler Hilton

23. Ride - The Vines

24. Looking Up - Paramore

25. Running - Evermore

26. Light Up The Sky - Yellowcard

27. Life On Earth - Band of Horses

* * *

Credits: Chapter title is from the song 'Somewhere Only We Know' by Keane. 


	3. No Sound But The Wind

**We Build Then We Break**

Chapter 2

No Sound But The Wind

* * *

_"When life comes rushing at you from out of the darkness, who will you choose to face it with? Will it be someone you trust? Will they be wise? And will their love for you help them to guide you to the light? Or will they lose their way in the darkness? Will they make noble choices? Or will that person be someone untested, someone new? Life comes rushing at you from out of the darkness, when it does - is there someone in your life you can count on? Someone who will watch over you when you stumble and fall? And in that moment, give you the strength to face your fears alone?"_

Lucas Scott – One Tree Hill, Season 4 Episode 6

* * *

I awoke the next morning feeling tired, which was unsurprising since I had barely slept all night. The others were already up and making breakfast when I crawled out of my sleeping bag. Yawning, I walked over to them and sat down beside May. She greeted me with a bright smile.

"Morning, Mist," Ash said from across the extinguished campfire, while beside him Gary's penetrating stare was focused only on me. I tried to ignore him, instead smiling sweetly at Ash.

"Morning," I put my hand through my long hair to get it off of my face and breathed in the refreshing mountain air. I felt better already. I made a decision not to let Gary ruin my last few days here. He could pry all he wanted to, but I owed him nothing and I didn't have to give him any answers to his questions. I could be mysterious too; there was no way I was giving in.

A question from Kenny derailed my train of thought.

"Did you guys hear those planes last night?"

Gary's stare intensified as I caught his gaze momentarily. I was suddenly shocked. I'd thought that everyone except Gary and myself had slept through the earsplitting sound of the planes.

"What planes?" Ash asked. He could sleep through an earthquake.

"I heard them," Dawn nodded, her blue hair hanging loose around her face.

"Me too," May joined in, "it was so loud, freaked me out."

"I saw them," Gary said, and all eyes turned to him. I froze. If the others found out I was out there alone with Gary, what would they think? What would Ash think?

"You did?" came the shocked mutters from the others.

Thankfully, Gary said nothing about me as he explained what we had seen.

"There were hundreds of them – black jets, flying low," he explained, his face completely serious.

"Hundreds?" Brock asked. Gary nodded in confirmation.

"Maybe a thousand."

"Where do you think they were going?" May's voice quivered slightly as she asked Gary. She looked freaked out as she petted her Espeon beside her.

"The Show," Ash was quick to put her fears to rest.

"That's what I thought," Gary agreed.

"Of course," Brock nodded thoughtfully. "They have air displays during The Show."

Everyone seemed to accept this reasoning and moved on to other conversations about what they were going to do that day. Once again though, I caught sight of Gary's piercing brown eyes, and once again, they seemed to be trying to convey something I couldn't decipher. Not that I wanted to.

* * *

I got up and trudged back over to my sleeping bag. The brightening sun was warming up the day, and I felt like taking a morning swim. I grabbed my bathers and walked into the tent we had set up to get changed in. I threw my clothes onto my sleeping bag, grabbed my Poke Balls and walked out to the river. The cool water was welcoming in the warm sun. I let out my Pokemon and they frolicked around me happily. I don't know how long I stayed there, but it was a while. After a while Ash waded as deep into the water as he could without getting his cargo shorts wet.

"Hey Mist!" he called. "Do you wanna go exploring?"

Ten minutes later, after I had recalled my Pokemon and pulled my denim cutoffs and tank top over my bathers, Ash and I were off on an expedition. I was excited – after three days of saying we were going to do something other than sit around in the clearing, sun bake and eat, we were finally acting on it. Just the thought of moving around was exhilarating!

"Didn't anyone else want to come?" I asked as I followed him out of the clearing and towards the entrance that had brought us there. Even Pikachu had opted to stay behind.

"No," he answered, shaking his head. "Everyone just wants to relax, but you know me, I can't stay still for long."

It was just me and Ash, and I was sort of nervous to be alone with him. I felt like something had changed between us, but I think that was more on my part than anything. Ever since I had accidentally discovered his quite obvious attraction to May I felt sort of lost around him, like I didn't know what we had in common anymore. Really though, nothing had changed. We were best friends, first and foremost, and we had grown up together, been through everything together – life, loss, hellos and goodbyes. But still, something felt…different.

I tried to ignore the feeling, to not let it affect our time together, as we made our way through the green corridor of shrubbery and came out into the small clearing that we had found ourselves in just days earlier. We were higher here, and the sun was hotter. I shielded my eyes with my hand.

"So, where to from here Ash?"

"Hmm…" his brown eyes danced with the prospect of adventure as he glanced around at the circle of trees and bushes around us. "How about there," he pointed to a narrow crevice, mostly covered by foliage, which seemed to lead up the mountain.

"Is it too steep?"

"We can only try."

So, we did, and though it was a bit of a struggle, we made our way up. After a little bit, the path (if you could call it that – it was mostly rocks and grass) straightened out, giving our calves a bit of a rest. Huge hanging trees provided us with some welcome shade, and soon we came to the end of that path – a small clearing leading on to the edge of the mountain - a cliff, of sorts.

We took a seat beside one another amongst the greenery, admiring the view over the rocky mountain.

"So Ash, what are you going to do now that you're back from Sinnoh?" I asked him, and he gazed ahead thoughtfully, before shaking his head.

"I'm not sure yet," his lips turned up in a small smile. "But, I think I want to spend a bit of time at home with my mum before I decide. I feel like I always leave her, you know?" I nodded, understanding.

"Well, you do deserve a break. You have been on the road for eight years you know."

"Has it been that long?" he grinned, and then shook his head as he remembered, "When I think back to that first day…"

"Yeah, you were pretty stupid," I said, but he knew I was joking.

"At least I didn't go and lend my bike to some stranger," that riled me up.

"Ash Ketchum!"

"Ok, ok," he held his hands up defensively, but I backed down with a smile on my face, remembering back to that day.

"You know Mist, if it weren't for you I never would have gotten anywhere," I was flattered by his comment, but it wasn't true.

"Yes, you would have. You would have been fine. You always are, Ash. You should have more faith in yourself."

He didn't answer, just glanced at me with a strange look on his face, perhaps like he was wondering where the old, scary Misty was.

"I mean it Ash. You should be really proud of what you've achieved. I know I am."

The sound of nature and wildlife was all that could be heard in the few seconds of silence that fell between us. I think he was still trying to work out whether I was an imposter.

"C'mon, you can't be the real Misty. What have you done with her?" he mirrored my thoughts as he peered at me, a slight grin present in his serious eyes.

"Shut up," I hit him playfully, and he laughed.

"Oh, that is you. My apologies."

I glared at him for a few more seconds, and then laughed. I forgot how much I loved our relationship, just mucking around with him, just being his friend. I never had to pretend to be someone else around Ash. He always took me as I was. Unfortunately though, that always left me wanting more...

"I can be nice," I crossed my arms with a sly smile. Ash said nothing in reply. Well, he didn't dare to, anyway.

"Thanks, Misty," he said a few moments later, his face turning serious again. "That's really nice of you to say."

As his honest chocolate eyes smiled into mine, I felt myself flush and glanced away. With a sigh, I realised my feelings for Ash weren't something I could just turn off. It wasn't going to be that easy.

"It's just the truth," I laughed my way through my obvious unease. "So anyway... Uh...I'm really glad I came out here."

"Me too," he said, his handsome features lighting up in a smile.

"You are?"

"Of course. I miss you, Mist."

I was stunned, to say the least, so much so that all I could do was stare at him, dumbfounded, wondering how the hell he had gotten the upper hand on me.

"Y-you do?" my words came out like I had something stuck in my throat, and in my shock I was becoming more and more frustrated.

"Of course," as he spoke I wondered why he was so comfortable with this situation while I was not.

"You're my best friend. We had so much fun when we were travelling together, and I miss that."

Best friend? Oh...

I almost laughed, but not because it was funny. I don't really know why I was so surprised. I had known, deep down, all along, that he felt nothing more than friendship for me. It was just hard to hear, I guess. It was like having a dream and then being told that it wasn't ever going come true, and there was nothing you could do about it. The worst part was that he had no idea, as he sat beside me, how much he had hurt me with those four words.

"Well, I miss you too, Ash," I said, trying to keep my voice from breaking like my heart. If only he knew how bad the pain was as I sat there beside him.

He grinned at me, and I forced a smile back.

We made our way back soon after; the sun was getting hotter and we didn't want to be in its direct light at the hottest part of the day. That and I was getting tired of keeping my guard up in front of Ash and pretending everything was okay, when it honestly wasn't. Truthfully, I just wanted to be alone for a little while, to think, to work myself out.

* * *

When we got back, May and Dawn were brushing Glaceon and Buneary, while Gary was reading a scientific looking magazine and Brock was showing Kenny something to do with his Pokemon food. Ash made his way over to May and Dawn, but I didn't feel like joining in. I had too much on my mind, and the huge clearing suddenly seemed very small. I just needed some time alone.

I walked over to the water. It was clear and pure, simple and uncomplicated. Water could always soothe me. I followed the creek to the far left edge of the clearing, where it trickled into a narrow corridor of rock that was way too small to fit in. I climbed up onto the rock and found a small, flat area, which was nicely sheltered from the sun by a huge tree and the ferns that grew around it. I watched Ash as he laughed with May while they played with her Glaceon.

With a sigh, I realised that I couldn't be angry at him for not loving me. It wasn't fair, or his fault. You couldn't make yourself feel something for someone. Perhaps I just felt angry at myself for wasting all this time, for not realising sooner, and for seeing things that weren't ever there. It was always a possibility that he wouldn't feel the same, but it wasn't the possibility. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Nonetheless, it was how it was, and what could I do now other than accept it and move on? I wondered how hard it would be to see him in love with someone other than me.

Whilst pondering that question, I heard someone approach and looked down to find Gary climbing up the rock, making his way towards me.

I cursed inwardly. I just wanted to be alone. Why was he so damn persistent?

He smiled at me with those eyes that eluded mystery and crossed his arms as if daring me to speak first. Clearly he didn't know me well enough. I wasn't giving him the satisfaction. I glanced at him with a look that clearly said 'don't mess with me', but his lack of any reaction only made me angrier.

"Need some alone time?" his tone was mocking, and I gritted my teeth. This guy was seriously annoying me. Who did he think he was anyway?

"Yeah, and you're now ruining it."

I snuck a glance at him, but he did and said nothing - just stared ahead at the others, though his eyes were unfocused, deep in thought. I was afraid to contemplate what he was thinking about.

"He's not right for you, you know."

I almost choked on air, I was so dumbfounded by his statement.

"W-what did you say?" my eyebrow creased as I glanced at him in incredulity.

"I said, he's not right for you."

I felt anger rise within me; it almost choked me with its force as it burst from within me.

"You don't know anything," I spat, trying feebly to keep my voice down so the others wouldn't notice, "so keep your stupid opinions to yourself."

"You might not realise it now, but you will," he said, and I watched, surprised, as he stood and peered down at me through those thoughtful, dark eyes. I met his gaze, but though I was still angry, I was also confused. In that moment, I hated him, yet somehow I also felt this overwhelming attraction for him. It was something I had never felt before, like in a moment, something switched on inside me and said, 'it's okay, stop denying that you feel something for him.'

But, I didn't know if I did or if I didn't.

Still, as I watched him walk away, I knew there was _something_ between us, something undiscovered and undefined. I just wasn't sure I wanted to explore it.

If it were possible, I felt even more confused than before.

* * *

It rained that night, so we put up our tents. Dawn and Kenny insisted on having their own tent - I didn't want to know what they were getting up to in there - so I ended up with May, which was cool, but a little weird.

We lay there in the dark, listening to the rain, chatting about how sad we were to be leaving tomorrow.

"I'm so glad I came," she said quietly, "it was the best decision I've made in a long time."

"I think you seem a lot better and happier."

"I do feel better," she agreed, "and you know, Ash has been great..."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. He is just...I don't know...incredible. He makes me feel like not all guys are jerks. Ash is real, what you see is what you get. He doesn't have any hidden agendas or secrets. I am so thankful to have him in my life."

I smiled, understanding.

"That's Ash for you. He has a good heart, always did."

A few moments of silence came between us before May spoke again.

"Can I ask you a question, Misty?"

"Um...sure," I knew I sounded hesitant, but I was. I wasn't sure where this conversation was headed.

"Are you and Ash...um...you know..."

"N-no," I interrupted slightly forcefully. "Me and Ash? No way," I laughed it off, though my heart was aching. I was thankful for the darkness - I was sure my face wasn't as confident as my voice.

"Really? I always thought..." she paused for a few seconds, "He always talks about you, and he has so much respect for you."

"Well, I don't know about the last part, but Ash and I...we're just..." I breathed in, trying to accept the words as I said them, "close friends. Nothing more."

May didn't reply, and I felt tense in the silence that lingered between us. Strangely though, this conversation felt sort of...good, in an excruciatingly painful way. It felt like some sort of closure, like saying it aloud made it more real, and somehow easier to accept, and hopefully move on.

It took a lot of strength for me to say what I said next, and I don't really know how I convinced myself to say it, but that light at the end of the tunnel that was closure was beckoning, and I was moving towards it.

"If I'm being honest, I think Ash only has eyes for one person."

"Really, who?"

"You."

"You're kidding me, right?"

"Not at all. I see the way he looks at you, and how much he cares about you. I'm no expert on men, May, but if you ask me, it's as plain as day that Ash likes you."

"I don't know..." May trailed off, her small voice fading into silence, blended with the steady fall of rain outside.

"Do...you want him to?" I asked a few moments later. It was the question I didn't want to ask, because I didn't really want to know the answer. Or, I didn't want to have to accept the answer.

"I don't know that either," she answered with a small sigh before continuing. "I feel like Ash is always saving me and coming to my rescue. I think he thinks I'm weak, and he feels like he always has to protect me. I want to be strong like you, Misty. Until I am I just don't think I can let myself feel anything..."

"But you are strong, May," I insisted, though I was a little bit flattered by how much she looked up to me.

"No, I'm not. That's why I let Drew walk all over me. I don't know or love myself enough to let anyone else love me..."

"What Drew did isn't your fault," I couldn't believe that May, possibly the prettiest, kindest and most perfect girl I had ever met, had all these demons and self-doubts. I wondered what had happened to the adventure-seeking, carefree girl she used to be when I'd first met her.

"I know," she said quietly, "but deep down I knew what was going on for a while, and I did nothing."

"But, you did eventually, and you're stronger for it."

"Maybe..."

"And, I think Ash only wants to protect you because he cares for you so much."

"Do...you really think so?"

"I've never been more sure of anything."

May sighed again. This was really tearing her up inside, and once again, though I would have loved to despise her for being the girl Ash loved, I couldn't. I felt some sort of sisterly bond with her, and I felt the need to guide her, to give her the right advice to get her life back on track, even if that meant leading her straight into Ash's arms. Just like my sisters were always there for me to talk to about my problems, I felt I owed it to May to do the same, to be that person for her.

May fell asleep pretty quickly, but for the second night in a row I found it difficult to do so myself. I laid in the tent listening to the rain until the early hours of the morning, when eventually, I finally drifted into welcome unconsciousness.

* * *

We awoke with the sun the next morning. I crawled out of my tent and breathed in the fresh mountain air, feeling sad that I would have to return to the smoky, polluted air of the city soon.

The earth was wet from the soaking rain last night, but everything seemed to sparkle in the sunlight as it reflected off of the leaves on the trees. It was beautiful, fresh, wondrous, our little paradise.

I smiled at Ash as he emerged from his own tent, his hair sticking up in every which direction.

"Morning."

"Morning," he said through a yawn. "I'm starving!"

I giggled as I tied my hair back in a ponytail to get it out of my face. I felt better about the whole Ash situation after chatting with May last night, but I wondered sadly whether I would ever get to the point where I could look at Ash and not feel something.

The others emerged from their tents soon after, and after we'd eaten breakfast, we got started with the packing and cleaning up, preparing ourselves for the trip out of the mountains. It was sure to be strenuous after sitting around doing nothing all week.

Though I was sad to leave, I felt a strange sort of pull inside me to hurry and get home, to check that everything was okay, to check on my sisters and the Gym. I couldn't explain it. Perhaps I was just homesick, after all I hadn't travelled in a while. It was strange, and I couldn't understand myself.

Because of it, though, my emotions got the best of me when I saw Ash lazing around and not packing up. I yelled at him, and we had a huge fight in front of everyone. I felt stupid after but he was really annoying me with his lazy, casual attitude!

Brock asked me what was wrong, but I couldn't even answer because I didn't know myself.

It was the first time Ash and I had had a fight in a long while, and as I was yelling at him, my eyes blazing into his, I felt like we were kids again. It was sort of funny, like de-ja vu.

* * *

Ash and I still weren't really talking when we set off, leaving our paradise behind and headed for the real world. I felt better now that we were moving, rather than just sitting around.

The day was heating up, and the air was thick and humid from last night's rain, which made the trip through the thick scrub frustrating and not very enjoyable.

We were all exhausted by the time we emerged from the corridor of scrub into the small clearing where the Jeep was parked, so we decided to stop for lunch. I was sort of annoyed that we weren't going to keep moving, but I couldn't argue with the fact that I was tired and hungry.

We fell upon the Jeep in ecstasy - not only because it meant we wouldn't have to walk in the sun anymore, but also because there was food inside. Our supplies were getting very low, reduced to boring canned food.

"I told you it was a good idea to leave some here," I couldn't help but express my own arrogance on the topic, even though I knew I was being crabby. Ash rolled his eyes at me and I sighed; he was really angry with me. I made a note to apologise to him. I had been a bit unfair, and he didn't deserve to be yelled at because of my impatience. Well, maybe a little, I thought with a laugh to myself.

We got into the food instantly; potato chips and Tiny Teddies never tasted so good. It was a terribly unhealthy lunch, but it felt amazing, and at least it would provide our energy levels with enough stimulants to last the trip home.

As the others laid around, I walked over to the edge of the mountain to take in the breathtaking view, but glancing out over the plains of Pallet Town and its surrounds didn't give me a good feeling; it seemed too quiet, too still somehow.

"So, is the world still there or what?" Gary came up beside me, breaking me out of my thoughts. I glanced at him for a second before staring back out at the town.

"Yeah," I replied uneasily. He caught on to my attitude.

"You seem a bit edgy today. What's up?" he seemed genuinely concerned for once. I half expected him to follow up with a PMS-related comment, but he didn't.

"I dunno," I shrugged, not giving much despite appreciating his concern. A few moments of silence later, I added, "I guess I'm just keen to get home, check everything is okay."

"Why wouldn't it be?" his eyes pierced mine as he asked the question; I noticed for the first time that in the sunlight they appeared to have a green tinge. I felt a sort of tense vibe coming from him as well, like he knew exactly how I was feeling - or like he felt the same way.

"I don't know," I shrugged again, turning away from him. "I have to go and talk to Ash," I then added quickly, and walked away, leaving him standing there contemplatively.

Ash was sprawled out on the grass, chatting and laughing with May, Dawn and Kenny.

"We'd better go help Brock clean up," May quickly said to Dawn and Kenny as I approached. I smiled at her appreciatively.

"Aww, but I was comfortable!" I heard Kenny say as Dawn dragged him away, rolling her eyes. I almost laughed, but I was too focused on my apology.

Ash raised an eyebrow at me and then looked away immaturely. I sighed. This wasn't going to be easy, and I was no good at apologies.

I sat beside him, and I gathered that he wasn't intending on speaking first, so I guessed that that was left to me.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you before, Ash. I was out of line, and I'm really sorry." What more could I say?

He didn't answer for a few seconds, and I started growing angry, wondering if he was so immature that he still wasn't going to talk to me, but luckily, a few seconds later he gave in.

"That's ok, Mist. I forgive you," his serious face broke into a smile, and I offered him a small smile of my own back.

"Are you anxious to get home or something? You seem a little worried," he had obviously picked up on my anxiousness.

"A little," I admitted. I really didn't want to worry him unecessarily, especially after being so mean to him this morning.

"I'm sure your sisters and the Gym are fine," he said comfortingly, and I smiled; thankful for his concern and understanding.

* * *

I was relieved when we had all piled into the car and started the drive down the mountain. The air conditioning was a cool relief from the hot day. I stayed quiet, though I felt much better after making peace with Ash. Gary threw me occasional glances in the rearview mirror as he drove, while the others chatted and sang along to May's CD. May glanced at me with a look, asking me with her expression whether I was okay. I nodded and tried to smile convincingly, and I guess it worked, for she seemed to accept it. After last night's conversation I felt like May and I had bonded. We were closer and it was good to have a girl friend I could talk to, even if she was in love with Ash.

I tried to work through my thoughts to try to discover what was making me so uneasy. I realised it all started when I'd seen those planes go past. I couldn't get past the fact that it didn't seem right, and I didn't think Gary could either.

It was a couple of hours until we reached the foot of the mountain and got onto a real road. I couldn't stop that same eerie feeling as before from bothering me as we drove through Pallet's surroundings. Again, I thought it seemed way too quiet, but I tried to keep cool; I was probably just going crazy in my anxiousness to get back to my sisters.

My feelings of apprehension only got worse though, as we reached Pallet Town. There was no one around. I knew Pallet Town was a quiet place, but it was ridiculously still. The others hadn't seemed to notice my discomfort; they sang, laughed and chatted, except Gary - who was still throwing me glances in the rearview mirror. I felt desperately uneasy, and it was increasingly difficult to keep it to myself as everyone laughed and carried on around me.

We pulled into Ash's mum's driveway just after 4pm. Everyone hopped out, grabbing their belongings as Ash found his key and unlocked the door. I was behind him half a minute later, but I found him inside, glancing around in the silence that had greeted him.

"Mum?" he called out, and then looked at me. "That's weird, she's not home."

"What...?" I glanced around the house in confusion. It gave me that same eerie feeling as the rest of the town.

"Maybe she went out?" Dawn came in, her casual demeanour calming me slightly. Yeah, of course, she's just out.

"Maybe... But she knew we were coming home tonight..."

That was true. Mrs Ketchum always made sure she was home for her son...

"What's wrong?" Brock entered the small kitchen, followed by May, Kenny and Gary.

"My mum's not here," Ash answered.

"Really?" May glanced around.

"That's weird..." Brock uttered.

"Well, maybe she's waiting for us at Professor Oak's," Dawn offered.

"Yeah, of course, she must be there!"

"Why don't you try her mobile phone?" May suggested to Ash.

"Good idea!" he walked the few steps to the phone on the kitchen bench and picked up the receiver. His face went blank.

"The line's dead," he said, and then glanced around the kitchen. "Power's out too."

I glanced around at the others, who had fallen silent. Gary's brow was creased in confusion, May looked suddenly afraid, Dawn was holding on to Kenny's hand tightly and Brock was calm, contemplative.

My heart lurched, this was all very strange and unnerving. I told myself not to panic, that it was just a coincidence, that there was nothing to worry about.

"We should head to my grandpa's. Your mum is probably there, Ash," Gary reasoned, his dark eyes on another train of thought as he spoke. I couldn't help but meet his gaze, but this time he barely noticed, just calmly turned and headed out of the room. A little too calmly...

No one argued, everyone just followed Gary out of the house quietly, leaving their belongings behind in favour of their urgent items.

This wasn't the homecoming we were expecting. I think the others were picking up on my uncertainty. There was something in the air, something wrong.

* * *

All there was, was silence.

That was the first thing we noticed as we approached Professor Oak's gigantic laboratory. We had not seen a single soul on the walk there.

The fields surrounding his house were usually alive with the sounds and activity of the many Pokemon that lived there. Today it was quiet, still, eerie.

We walked up the stairs that led to the laboratory and Professor Oak's residence. Perhaps the whole town was there, having a big surprise party to welcome us home. That would explain there being no one around, and maybe the phone company was having technical issues because of the power outage. I forced myself to believe that as we descended those steps, even though I knew deep down that it wasn't true.

Gary pulled out the key to his grandfather's house and opened the door. We stepped inside one after the other, hoping the house would be full of people, or at least the Professor, Tracey and Mrs Ketchum. No such luck though - all that we were greeted with was that same still silence.

"Grandpa?" Gary called out. I could make out a slight echo of panic in his voice.

No answer came.

Gary disappeared further into the house, calling out for his grandfather over and over. Each time he called and no answer came, my heart sank even further. I turned away from the others, who were chatting confusedly, and walked through to the living room, where a large glass window looked out into the paddocks.

My eyes widened as they set upon twelve or so bodies, lying unmoving in the green grass. They were dead. The Tauros were dead. I felt my throat tighten, while my heart skipped a beat and a wave of dread washed over me.

"Guys?" I called, but barely any voice came out in my panic. I tried to control my breathing, just enough to call out, to alert the others.

"Guys?" I called with a bit more success. They came running, but I couldn't turn away from the sight of the Tauros, just lying there motionless. Behind me, Dawn cried out in horror. Ash came up beside me, his face perfectly still as his eyes focused on the scene in front of him. I almost felt his heart sink, like a ship into the ocean.

"N-no, my Tauros!"

"The phones are dead here t-," Gary entered the room, but his words were cut short when he saw the Tauros, saw Ash, saw all of us standing there not knowing what to do or say.

Ash's face was painted with grief as he turned to face Gary. Just a second passed before he was out the door, Gary and Brock on his heels, running towards the Tauros.

Dawn started crying, panicked, choked sobs, and Kenny took her into his arms as he stared out to the others, who had just reached the Tauros.

I turned to May; her face was white, whiter than I had ever seen anyone. She looked like she was about to throw up, but I was so preoccupied with my own terrifying fear that I couldn't offer her any comfort. I turned away from the window. I realised I was shaking all over, and I tried to get ahold of myself. We didn't know what was happening. There was no point jumping to conclusions, I told myself, there had to be a logical explanation for all of this.

* * *

The others came back in after ten minutes or so.

"Seven are dead, five are alive, but barely. There are some other Pokemon out there as well..." Brock's voice was devoid of any emotion.

"What's wrong with them?" Kenny asked, still holding on to Dawn, who had her face buried in his shoulder.

Brock didn't answer for a while, like he was trying to find the right words, or perhaps because he didn't want to say them.

"They...they haven't been fed for a while...I'm not sure how long. A lot of the other Pokemon must have escaped in search for food but for some reason these guys didn't," he explained.

I glanced at Ash in sympathy - I knew he must be worried sick about all of the other Pokemon he had left here. I hoped they were all okay.

"What the hell is going on here?" Ash exclaimed; his normally bright eyes swallowed in dark despair.

Everyone was getting nervous and fearful. We started rambling, trying to work it out.

"Why would everyone in this town be gone?" Kenny asked.

"It's like they've been evacuated or something," Dawn added, her voice trembling from her tears.

"Maybe there was some big disaster and they had to get everyone out," Kenny suggested.

"No!" Gary interjected, "There's no way my grandpa would leave the Pokemon here to die," his uncertainly was making him angry, his dark eyes flashed with frustration.

"And surely my mum would have left a note or something telling us what is going on," Ash added.

"Then what else could it be?" I asked the question that no one wanted to answer. All I could think of were possibilities, and none of them were good.

"You know..." Brock piped up after a few tense moments of silence, "Ash, your house looked exactly the same as it had the day we left. Do you think... Do you think it's possible that they didn't come back from The Show?"

"That's true..." Ash murmured.

"You're right," Gary agreed glumly, "it's the same with this place. It doesn't look like it's been lived in."

My thoughts were taking me to a possibility, a very scary possibility. I didn't want to say it aloud; it sounded so unlikely, so over the top in my head. Surely there had to be a simpler explanation. Surely it couldn't be...that... But no matter how out there it sounded, shouldn't I say it? What if it were true? What if we were in terrible danger just by being here?

"The planes," I spoke, my voice trembling. "What if... What if those planes weren't ours?"

You could've heard the sound of a pin dropping - everyone went completely silent.

"What do you mean, not ours?" Dawn's voice was edgy.

"Not ours..." I repeated, "Someone else's. Someone else that shouldn't be here."

No one said anything for a bit - I don't know how long, until Gary spoke suddenly.

"They didn't have lights." His face was twisted in sudden realisation.

"What?" I wasn't sure I had heard him properly, or rather, I wasn't sure I wanted to.

"The planes. They didn't have their lights on. Why would fighter planes be flying at night with their lights off?" his question hung in the air. I thought back to that night. I had noticed the absence of lights but for some reason it hadn't occurred to me that there was something wrong with that. I wanted to kick myself for being so ignorant.

"You never told us that," Ash's voice was thick with fear. You rarely saw Ash afraid, but right now he was the picture of fear, his features tense and his eyes clouded with panic. "Why didn't you tell us that?" he was getting angry now, frustrated with the uncertainty.

"I don't know why!" he glanced at me momentarily, and then back to Ash. "It just didn't seem important at the time!"

"Well it sure as hell is important now!" Ash fired back. I couldn't blame him for being angry - he was afraid, and we all had different ways of showing it.

"Cut it out you two! Let's just calm down and try to work this out, alright?" Brock, always the sensible one, stepped in. Ash let his guard down with a small sigh, while Gary crossed his arms. I felt better just with Brock being there with us.

"Let's get all the facts straight here..." Brock said. "Pallet Town seems to be uninhabited, and it looks like people haven't been back since the Show. There is no power and the phones are cut off, and five days ago about one-thousand jet planes flew past headed this way at night with no lights."

We all fell silent while we contemplated these facts. I bit down on my lip; I couldn't get past the theory in my head, and it was terrifying me to the core. An idea suddenly sparked in my mind.

"Gary, do you have a radio here? Maybe we can find out what's happening on one of the stations."

"Yeah, that's a great idea," Brock said as Gary nodded, swinging into action as he left the room. A few quiet minutes passed before he returned with a small, old radio in hand. It was one of those old-school ones with the huge antenna, but a radio was a radio.

He opened up the battery case at the back and put in two batteries he had carried in his other hand. We waited in bated silence as he turned it on and scanned through the stations, but no human voices could be heard, for all we found was static.

"Maybe you scanned too fast," I suggested, and Gary glared at me, but decided not to argue, he scanned through the frequencies again, slower this time. It made no difference though. There was still only cold, empty static.

I think we had all gotten our hopes up for the radio, because I felt the disappointment in the room when it didn't produce the result we wanted.

"No radio..." Brock trailed off. He didn't need to continue, we all knew what he was alluding to, we all knew how much worse this was now.

"Think about it..." Gary was the first to voice the words we were all trying not to think, "All the Gym Leaders were at the Conference, and 90% of the surrounding townspeople were at The Show. The most important people in the world were all in Viridian City, as well as a whole lot of civilians. If they wanted to do something, they couldn't pick a better time." Gary's words lingered in the silence that followed them. It made sense, though. That was the scary part. It actually made total and complete sense. I wondered how long Gary had been considering this theory. His strange glances and knowing looks suddenly made a lot more sense. Had he known something was going on from days ago?

"Oh God..." I murmured. It was so painstakingly obvious when all the facts were put together like that. The others were making the connections I had been making for a while. Now I knew - it had to be true.

I felt myself shaking again. This time I couldn't stop.

"Do what?" May's sudden outburst shocked us; she hadn't spoken since we'd arrived at the lab. Her skin was white and her brow crinkled in fear.

Dawn turned to her and took her hand in an effort at reassurance, but the realisation had hit her like a tone of bricks.

"This is all just a bit misunderstanding," she babbled, fighting with tears pulling at her eyes. "It has to be."

"It's not!" Gary hit back quickly; he was pacing the room so fast I thought he was going to make a hole in the floor.

"Shut up Gary!" Ash yelled, rushing to May's defense. "Just shut up for half a sec!"

"Well, stop denying it! We have to face the truth here! We could be in danger just by standing here!"

Suddenly, whatever sense was holding us together failed, and we all fell apart. May started crying, murmuring about her parents and her brother, Ash ran to her and held her, all the while glancing up at me with a miserable look that broke my heart in pieces. Gary kept pacing, putting his head in his hands, losing his cool. Dawn cried into Kenny's shirt, and he did his best to help her whilst trying to hold himself together and failing. I stepped back to the wall I was standing near and leaned against it, letting it take my weight as I slid down against it until I had reached the ground. I wrapped my arms around my knees and stared ahead into nothing, eyes wide, working through what this meant for us, for our families, most of whom were either at the Conference or the Show. I thought of my sisters. Where were they? Were they okay? Not knowing was gnawing at me aside with everything else. Even Brock didn't try to stop us, he just sat on the couch, staring into space. He caught my gaze at one point. We understood each one another - we were both thinking of our families.

* * *

This went on for a couple of minutes. We were all terrified, and we had no idea what to say or do. Nothing was as it was supposed to be. This just didn't happen to people like us. This happened in the movies, to fictional characters, but not to us.

Gary ended up calling us to attention, snapping something about not having time to fall apart now. We needed to think. He was right, we did need to think, and think fast. I stood up, somehow gathering some inner strength.

"We need to be smart about this," my voice was emotionless, but authoritative. "We need to presume the worst. If we're wrong, so be it, but for now we have to assume we've been invaded by someone."

I felt sick as I spoke the words, like I was going to throw up, like I was drowning.

I looked around at the others. Ash still had his arm around May, but he was staring ahead lifelessly, like a robot. I just knew a little part of him had died in that moment, and it made me doubly sad. Gary's brow was creased, his eyes unfocused, mind running a million miles a second. Brock had his head in his hands now, and with tears still streaming down her face Dawn had separated herself from Kenny, who was tearing up himself.

"What do we do now?" Ash asked, his voice was so small I barely heard it.

"We need facts," Gary stated. No one argued with him, so he went on. "We need to go to Viridian City."

* * *

To be continued...

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A massive thanks to everyone who has reviewed! I really appreciate all of the feedback that I get and I love knowing that you're enjoying this story. So thank you. :)

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**Playlist:**

No Sound But The Wind - The Editors

Between The Lines - Sara Bareilles

Feels Like Letting Go - Matthew Perryman Jones

Timshel - Mumford and Sons

Fair Fight - The Fray

Devil In Me (Acoustic) - Kate Voegele

My Love - Sia

Goodbye To You - Michelle Branch

Inside Out - Kate Voegele

They'll Never Know - Ross Copperman

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Credits: Chapter title is from the song 'No Sound But The Wind' by The Editors.


	4. Suddenly Everything Has Changed

**We Build Then We Break**

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Chapter 3

_Suddenly Everything Has Changed_

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_"Most of our life is a series of images. They pass us by like towns on the highway. But sometimes a moment stuns us as it happens. And we know that this instant is more than a fleeting image. We know that this moment, every part of it, will live on forever.'"_

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We sat around for hours waiting for it to get dark, so that we could set out for Viridian City. Having decided it was too dangerous to stay upstairs, we sat in the basement around an old oil lamp, our only light. We didn't want to run the risk of being caught by any enemies, if in fact there _were_ enemies out there... Gary had even moved the Jeep into the garage to make it look like nobody had been there.

We spent our time contemplating, planning and making lists of things we would need if we were going to have to go back into the mountains. I was hoping it wouldn't come to that, that this was all a misunderstanding, but sadly my gut feeling told me that that wasn't so.

"Ok, so what is the plan?" I began, meeting the others' gazes. Everyone looked nervous and tense; I think we all just wanted to get going.

"We leave at 9 pm on foot for Viridian," Gary said clearly, glancing around at us in the dim light that illuminated the room. His voice and face were so serious; it was making me even more anxious than I already was. I think we were just starting to realise how much danger we might be putting ourselves in by going to Viridian. But the decision was conclusive - we had to know what was going on.

"We will need to stay hidden, just in case. I will get some darker clothes for all of you who aren't wearing them."

I glanced down at my bright red tank top and denim shorts. They definitely wouldn't do.

"I can get something of my sister's for you girls," he seemed to have noticed me looking at my clothes.

"So, we get to Viridian, then what?" it was Ash's turn to speak. Besides Gary, he was the only one who had stayed relatively calm through all of this, but something in his eyes wasn't right. The spark had died. He looked empty and lifeless. Perhaps he hadn't fallen apart on the outside, but the inside was a different story. Leave it to Ash to try to be strong for all of us. May sat silently beside him. I saw his hand tighten around hers; he hadn't left her side since we had put the pieces together. Beside them, Dawn lay in Kenny's lap, his arms secure around her. She had listened to the plan, nodding in agreement at each part, and though she looked afraid she also looked ready to go out and get some answers. Brock sat cross-legged on Ash's other side, his brow creased as he contemplated our plan so far. I was _so_ glad that Brock was with us. He always knew what to do in bad situations, and he always had the answers to everything. His kind, wise face was comforting – he was like the older brother I never had, and I was more than thankful for his presence.

All of this sitting around in anticipation was making us anxious and edgy. We just wanted to know exactly what we were dealing with. At least then we could make some definite plans, at least then we would know what condition our families were in... That was the worst thing, I think - not knowing if our families were okay, if they were even alive... The only thing keeping me going was the will to find my sisters and to know that they were okay. I couldn't even think of the possibilities if that were not so. All I could do was have hope for them and stay strong. We couldn't afford to fall apart just yet.

"Our mission is to check out the town, so we'll approach it together first to see what's going on, and then decide from there whether we need to go further, in which case, we may need to split up into groups," Gary replied to Ash's question.

"Split up?" Ash questioned his once-rival. "Why would we want to do that?"

Gary's eyes shone in the light as he challenged Ash.

"There is less chance of us _all_ getting caught if we split up, Ash. Use your head."

Ash was not happy with Gary's mocking criticism, and I saw his eyes blaze with a frustrated anger that I had never really seen in him before.

"So you want us to split up and walk into a death trap, do you?"

"Everything we do is a risk, Ash!" Gary retorted.

Ash crossed his arms immaturely. I wasn't sure what had gotten into him, but I think he was just frustrated at all of the sitting around and waiting.

"Come on, Ash," I stepped into their conversation, giving him a comforting look, "it might not even come to that. Let's hope it doesn't. And if it does…well…it _would_ be safer for us to split up," Ash glanced up at me, but he looked…hurt, that I had taken Gary's side. Guilt stabbed me like a knife. I hadn't intentionally meant to offend or hurt him.

The competition between Ash and Gary was still intense, even after all these years, and it was only amplified by the tense frustration we were all feeling.

* * *

Later on, I went with Gary to his sister's room to find dark clothes for us girls to change into. We ascended the stairs in silence and I followed behind him in the darkness to a room at the end of the hallway.

I had never met Gary's sister, but I knew who she was - Daisy Oak - not only was she one of the most successful Pokemon Coordinators in the world, she was also a world-famous model. Her small room was neat and tidy. I had no idea where she was located now but Gary didn't say much about her as he opened a few drawers looking for dark clothing. Daisy was obviously quite organised - her wardrobe was colour coordinated.

"How come you seem so calm?" I asked as I sat down on her double bed. The mattress felt so comfortable after sleeping on the ground for a week. Gary glanced up at me from his spot kneeling in front of his sister's chest of drawers.

"I don't know what else to do," he admitted quietly, honesty crossing his face.

"Aren't you afraid?"

His lips pursed, and his eyes changed – through his brilliant dark emerald orbs shone an edge of fear and uncertainty to rival my own. Gary's strong-willed leadership was admirable, but I could see that he was afraid, just like the rest of us. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone, replaced by a glazed, emotionless gaze.

"I guess…but I'm worried about what's happened to our family and friends."

I nodded silently.

"No matter how bad it is…I'm glad we're all together," I said, glancing down at my red converse shoes. I truly wouldn't want to be with anyone _but_ my best friends at a time like this. He was staring ahead thoughtfully when I glanced back up, but he said nothing in reply. Once again, he was keeping his real feelings hidden. His eyes appeared as though they wanted to speak to me, but the words never came. At the same time I found myself surprised. This was the first conversation I'd had with Gary that hadn't left me bitter and angry. Perhaps all of that arrogance and snide confidence was just a front to cover the real person inside – the person that _felt_ this to the core. Perhaps he was too afraid to admit that he was just like the rest of us.

After a bit more searching, we found a few pairs of black cargo pants and some hoodies that would fit us, and made our way downstairs to find the others.

* * *

As 9 pm approached we got ready to set out into the darkness. We left the safety of the Oak's residence and stepped out into the uncertainty of the world.

"We need to stick to the trees," Gary said as we walked together on the road towards Viridian City. I was almost angry at him for being so cautious – I didn't _want_ to have to go to such extreme measures, to have to hide ourselves away in our _own_ country – but I didn't argue with him, instead choosing to follow him as he led us off of the path and into the thick forest.

The night was dead quiet and just as eerie as the still day that we had walked into hours earlier. Clouds covered the moon, not leaving us much light in the dark forest. I hoped that no disgusting Bug Pokemon had plans to come within ten feet of me. Resisting the urge to scream and run would be extremely difficult. We walked in perfect silence, which sadly only left me with my thoughts. My stomach was doing flip-flops, I didn't want to take another step but my drive to know what was happening in our world was too strong - it forced me to take each step. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that whatever it was, it was very, very bad, and it was about to change our lives forever.

My thoughts took me to a place I didn't want them to go, a place where our country had in fact been invaded. What would our life become? We had been through countless situations where our lives had been in danger, but we had never experienced anything we couldn't handle. This was different. Their invasion meant their success, and if they had every Gym Leader _and_ the Elite Four of every region – the most powerful trainers in the world – then there was no one to fight back. I thought about all those planes, moving through the night sky, ugly, mechanical beasts. Nobody would have expected it. These people knew what they were doing, and whatever it was, it was perfectly plotted and organised. These people were obviously smart and tactical - how could we hope to come up against something like that?

I wondered whether it was Team Rocket who was in charge of this mission. I remembered Ash and Brock telling me that they hadn't seen Jessie and James in a while. But it didn't seem possible – Team Rocket weren't capable of pulling off something of this magnitude – or, they never had been before.

I cursed myself for being so completely negative - I had already made up my mind about what we would find. But it was hard to dispel the facts. It all seemed too put together, too simple, too real.

About ten minutes into our journey we heard a low murmur, the familiar rumble of a motor car in the distance. We quickly made our way deeper into the forest and jumped to the ground. I felt the cool earth under my fingertips as we waited anxiously. We were sheltered enough that they wouldn't be able to see us, but through the mess of tree branches we could see out onto the road. The hum got louder and louder, and sure enough a vehicle passed us. It was a horrible metal contraption, and it carried five people, by my count, but these definitely weren't _our_ people. They were covered from head to toe in shiny armour which glinted evilly in the moonlight. We could hear their quiet chatter, nothing that we could make out from our distance, but they certainly felt comfortable in their surroundings - in _our_ surroundings. Even more comfortable than us… My heart beat in my chest, it felt so loud that I was certain the others could hear it. When they had passed by and the humming evaporated into the sounds of the forest, I allowed myself to take a breath, realising I hadn't taken one in a while. I glanced at the others nervously. None of us said a thing, but we knew – those strange armoured people could only mean one thing…

We got moving again soon after, even more anxious than before. We walked in single file, trying to be extra quiet, but I felt like every one of my movements was louder than ever. I was tense and nervous as seconds ticked into minutes, and before I knew it Gary had stopped in front of me, and I realised we were already in the outskirts of Viridian.

"There's a hill up there," he pointed deeper into the forest. "We'll have cover, and we'll be able to see all of Viridian from up there."

We followed him obediently. Gary had certainly formed the role of the group leader, while Ash, surprisingly, let him make the decisions without argument. I turned to glance at him. He was right behind me, staying close to May, while Pikachu's brown eyes peered out from within his backpack. He looked less miserable now; there was a fire in his eyes, a burning desire to find out what had caused his home town to be suddenly deserted. I nodded to May confidently, hoping I looked convincing enough to give her some sort of self-assurance. But she only looked uncertain and scared.

As we got closer to the top of the hill, I realised we were near the spot where I first met Ash. Just off to the right was the river where I was fishing when all of a sudden, he was my 'catch of the day'. I laughed at the thought.

Gary stopped again once he thought we were high enough, and we cautiously made our way towards the edge of the hill where we would be able to see Viridian City. As we got closer we got on our hands and knees and crawled the rest of the way.

Our eyes cast hurriedly over the city of Viridian, trying to take in as much as we could, to work it all out as quickly as possible, hoping like hell that it wasn't what we thought.

Most of the city was in darkness, except for a few places - the giant Viridian Gym, where the conference was held, the hospital and Pokemon Centre, and the Pokemon Arena – the show grounds. They stood out against the blackness, bright areas, and the only areas where there was any movement. The show ground was inside the huge Pokemon arena, the biggest one in Kanto except for the one at the Indigo Plateau. Inside it we could see people, a lot of people, and a row of guards surrounding the stadium. They wore those same strange, armour-like uniforms as the people we had seen in the car earlier, but up closer I could see that each suit had metal wings adoring its back in different colours – purple, black, red, blue Most disturbing of all, though, was that they held rifles - large, black rifles.

My heart sank - our suspicions were confirmed. We had been invaded by these people in these strange uniforms, and they were holding civilians hostage inside the show ground. I heard May whimper somewhere near me, but I was so fixated on what was going on that I couldn't tear my eyes away. I focused on the Gym - were all the Leaders there? Were my sisters there? Were they too being held captive?

"Misty!" I heard Gary whisper hurriedly, and I turned to find the others creeping back into the forest. I followed them.

"I think we have to get closer, find out who they are," Gary whispered, his dark eyes shining in the darkness, his features set in a tense frown.

"Isn't that a bit dangerous?" Brock argued.

"Yeah Gary, they have _guns_," Dawn agreed, uncertainty plastered on her young face.

"We've come this far," I went in to bat for Gary, who looked surprised that I was taking his side once again.

"Yeah," Ash nodded, and I glanced at him in surprise. He was agreeing? "I agree, we have to find out what we're up against. We can't turn back now."

"Then it's settled," I don't think Gary was ever taking no for an answer, but he certainly looked shocked at Ash's sudden change of heart. "We split up."

I took a deep breath. We all knew this was coming, but that didn't make it any easier.

"Ash and May, you can check out the Gym, since it is obviously a main part of the operation. Dawn, Brock and Kenny, go through the streets, stay low, and see what you can find out. Misty and I will go to the show grounds."

I instantly wondered about Gary's pairings, but I didn't have time to give it much thought.

"We meet back here at 2 am," Gary continued.

"What if some of us don't come back?" Kenny asked the question we were all thinking.

Gary thought for a few moments before deciding, "Whoever gets back goes back to my grandpa's, and then returns tomorrow night at 2 am. If you get stuck in town, lay low for the day until you can get out at night and meet back here."

Suddenly we were faced with this danger, this horrifying situation, and we no longer had the security of staying together. As I looked around at the others, I felt a pang of fear - what if this was the last time I saw some of these people? I choked back the urge to cry and swallowed the lump forming in my throat. Now was the wrong time to fall apart.

We hugged each other goodbye, wishing one another luck. I stayed in Ash's arms for as long as I could. I didn't want to let him go, I didn't want him to be out of my sight, where I wouldn't know if he was okay. The mere thought of losing him was piercing my mind like never before. I felt like I did that day he gave his life to stop Mewtwo and Mew from fighting.

"Stay safe, Ash," I whispered, my voice quivering.

"You too, Mist," he spoke softly, tightening his grip on me. I met his eyes as we pulled apart. He nodded at me, calm through his obvious uncertainty. Ash didn't mask his real emotions like Gary did, and that was one of the things I loved about him. Or, used to…

I hugged May, who was trembling in fear.

"Don't worry," I attempted to reassured her. "You are strong - much stronger than you think. You can do this."

"Thanks Misty," it was the first time I'd heard her voice in hours.

I embraced Brock last. He told me to be careful, and I told him to do the same. I wished he was coming with me but I couldn't be selfish.

It was time to split up, to set off…

* * *

We made our way back down the hill. I looked back, but the others had already disappeared into the darkness. I took a deep breath, saying a small prayer that we would all come back together safely later tonight.

"It's just you and me now, babe," Gary whispered in my ear. I was not impressed.

"Even in a crisis, you still can't help being an ass," I hissed with as much rage as I could manage in the still silence. He only laughed. He seemed to love to torture me, and it was extremely annoying.

"We need to get as close as we can to those show grounds," he turned serious, his forehead creasing as he contemplated the best way to get there. "I say we go around the forest edge of the town for as far as we can, and then we're just going to have to play it by ear."

I nodded, not having any reason to argue with his method.

"Here," he took his black cap off and put it on my head, peering into my eyes mischievously. "That red hair is sure to attract attention."

I rolled my eyes as I fixed the hat onto my head, trying to push as much of my hair into it as I could.

I followed close behind Gary as we made our way towards the show grounds, desperately trying to stay as quiet as we could. Every little twig that snapped beneath my shoe seemed ten times louder than it actually was in the intense silence we were trying to maintain. Gary kept glancing back at me, I didn't know why - maybe he was checking to make sure I was still there, or maybe I was being too loud. As we got closer we started to hear voices, announcements over the large PA system in the arena and the various chatter of people. But it was very ordered, not the sort of chatter you hear amongst friends, but more the sound of voices giving directions.

My stomach was in knots, and with every step it twisted and turned. I felt like throwing up a lot of times but I didn't, couldn't. I felt like I was shaking all over; not knowing what we were walking into was killing me.

Gary and I got as close as we could whilst still in the concealment of the forest, but even there we couldn't see much. We had to get closer. We were near the car park, where lines and lines of vehicles were parked, windows fogged up from the cool night. They had obviously been there for days, since the show began. Gary turned to me.

"Use the cars as cover and stay low," he instructed.

"Okay," I nodded, trying to make myself look as confident as I could. He stared right into my eyes for a few seconds, his face softening slightly.

"Stay together."

I nodded again in silence, pursing my lips together to try and cover the fact that I was terrified, and Gary knew it.

He glanced down, and before I knew it he had taken hold of my hand. I froze, but had no choice but to move as he pulled me along with him. Suddenly, we were out of the forest, and in the open space. We crouched down behind the cars and made our way closer to the arena.

"If we can get close to the opening gates, we might be able to see inside," he whispered, and I nodded. It was a huge risk, but one we had to take.

I started to panic as we got closer - out here in the open we were in view of anyone who happened to look our way; it would only take a second for them to grab their rifles and shoot us. A wave of panic washed over me, but I pushed it aside to the deepest abyss of my mind and hoped it would stay there.

We finally came to the end of the front row of cars. If we could see past them we would be able to see inside of the arena. I took a deep breath. I was nowhere near prepared to see what I was dying to see. What did they call that - a catch 22?

We crouched down under a four wheel drive and peered into the entrance, past the iron gates, and our suspicions were confirmed.

* * *

The grounds were littered with fires burning from metal drums, and around them stood the townspeople - innocent people – women, men and children. I cast my eyes around frantically, but I didn't recognise anyone. There seemed to be areas sectioned off with barbed wire, behind which other people stood. One positive was that it didn't look like they were being treated too badly. One thing in particular caught my eye – a man dressed in a red suit of armour adorned with black metal wings walked around with his rifle, and oddly enough, following behind him was a Dragonite, just like Lance's. I watched it closely as it followed the man obediently. There was something immensely strange about it - it looked acutely focused, but not in a good way, and, I didn't know if my eyes were playing tricks on me, but it seemed to be encased in a sort of…shadow - a strange, purple aura that emanated _evil_. Dragonites' bright purple orbs usually shone with kindness and intelligence. This one's eyes were clouded with rage and maliciousness. It looked like it _wanted_ to fight, like it was ready to kill. There were no other Pokemon in sight aside from that Dragonite.

I glanced at Gary, whose eyes were fixated ahead, his brow creased in contemplation.

Suddenly, we could hear arguing - it was a man's voice, yelling, but we couldn't make out what he was saying. Two guards, both dressed in those same strange armoured uniforms charged at him, but he didn't back down. He yelled in their faces, pointing at them accusingly. The two guards grabbed the man and shoved him over to the right, beyond our line of sight. My eyes widened as I realised what was about to happen. Gary craned his head, but it was too late. The unmistakable sound of a rifle firing rang through the air.

My heart and stomach lurched. My hands flew over my mouth. I felt physically sick. Screams and cries could be heard from the people inside, but they were ordered silent by the voice over the PA. We could hear it clearly now.

"Anybody who steps out of line will not be tolerated, or let this fool be an example of what will happen."

It was a cold, almost mechanical voice that sent shivers down my spine.

"I've seen enough," Gary whispered. His face was twisted with something between anger and terror, his eyes clouded with an emotion I couldn't define.

We backed out from under the car and went back the way we came, suddenly in a hurry to get back into the dark forest and away from this dangerous place. We had only taken a few steps when suddenly, a bright light reflected on the car I was facing. I saw my face twist with fear in the window's reflection and I looked back. They had seen us. Their shiny armour glinted in the light as they raised their rifles, frenzied commands being thrown back and forth between them. I froze for a second as my eyes scanned our surroundings - we were completely out in the open with nowhere to hide. My heart caught in my throat as the sound of the first bullet firing rang through the air. I unfroze myself from my panic and forced my legs to move as Gary came up beside me.

"Let's _run_!" he yelled, and as we heard the sound of more bullets being behind us, we bolted as fast as we could. I heard screams from inside the show grounds behind us as we weaved through the cars, hoping like mad that one of those bullets wouldn't hit us. It was an odd feeling, running for your life but just waiting for the impact of a bullet. We got to the end of a row of cars and ducked behind it.

"Where do we go?" I managed to choke out through my ragged breathing.

"If we go into the forest we might lead them to the others. We have to find somewhere to hide."

We didn't have much time to deliberate, as more bullets went flying through the air above us.

We ran as fast as we could, hearing the bullets spray through the night air behind us. As we got further from the show grounds we escaped them, but we were sure they weren't far behind us. We turned in to a dark street and sure enough, we heard yelling behind us. I turned back to find a group of them at the corner. If we didn't lose them now we would be running all night. Seeing an opportunity, I pulled Gary's hand and we ran through the open gate into the backyard of a small family home. The only light here was coming from the moon, which was mostly covered by clouds. I almost tripped as I stumbled on something, maybe a child's toy. Exhausted but running completely on adrenaline now, we kept running until we reached the back porch. I checked the back door.

I couldn't believe it – it was unlocked.

I pushed open the door and we fell inside, closing and locking it behind us. We were in complete darkness now as we waited, the only sound that of our frantic breathing.

* * *

"Do you think we lost them?" I turned to Gary as I whispered through my heavy breathing.

"Uh…" he stammered. My eyes widened as I caught sight of his face, pale, covered with sweat, his eyes wincing as he clenched his teeth together.

"What-" I started to ask, but as my eyes adjusted better to the darkness I noticed his hand holding on tightly to his right arm, which was covered with blood.

The realisation washed over me quickly.

"They hit you?" He only grimaced in reply as he glanced down to his arm. I couldn't believe he had gone all that time without saying something. He must have been in incredible pain.

My mind flew into a panic, and suddenly, the soldiers outside searching for us mattered not. I had to stop the bleeding.

"Let me see," I knelt in front of him and reached up to his hand. He let me take it away without protest, his breathing ragged. The bullet wound was in his upper arm, but there was too much blood to see properly. I glanced around; I had to stop the bleeding fast. A pile of neatly folded clothes sat atop a large table. I dashed over and found a t-shirt, before rushing back over to Gary. I ripped the black fabric apart and used it to wipe the blood away. I breathed in deeply; blood had never been my forte, but I couldn't think about that now. Gary needed my help. I could now see the wound more clearly.

"It looks like the bullet went straight through your arm."

He nodded, clenching his teeth together to conceal the pain. I ripped another piece of the fabric and wrapped it tightly around the wound, which was still gushing with blood. The sticky red liquid ran down his arm onto the once clean cream carpet. I had never seen so much of it.

I felt tears threaten my eyes, but I pushed the urge away angrily. I could not cry now. If Gary could make it all that time with a gunshot wound without even so much as a complaint, I owed it to him to be strong.

I had to replace the bandage within minutes - it had bled out so quickly. I wrapped it tighter.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find some kind of pain relief medication," I explained, and rushed through the dark house, checking every room until I found the bathroom. I wished I had a flashlight, but I would just have to use what little light I had. I rustled through the medicine cabinet but all I could find was Panadeine Forte. It would have to do.

I rushed back with a glass of water from the bathroom and knelt in front of him. The bandage had bled out again.

"Here, you need to take these," I went to put them into his hand, but that wasn't going to work - the only one he had available was covered in blood.

"Open your mouth," I instructed, and he just looked at me for a few seconds, before eventually giving in. I put the two tablets on his tongue and held the water to his mouth. "Swallow."

He did, and then I got to work changing the bandage again. I was running on panicked adrenaline with no idea what I was doing. I glanced around the room, searching for a way to make him more comfortable. The living room was quite neat, with a television and three leather couches.

"I'm going to move you onto the couch, okay?" I said, and he nodded through clenched teeth.

Kneeling down beside him, I took his able arm and wrapped it around my shoulder.

"Do you think you can stand?" I asked him. It was the only way - there was no way I could carry him by myself. He nodded, and I wrapped my arm around his muscular torso as I pulled him onto his feet. I pushed my legs up as hard as I could so as to take most of his weight. Gary groaned in pain as we became fully upright.

"Sorry, are you okay?" I asked, glancing at his arm apologetically.

"Yeah," I wasn't expecting any other answer.

It took a couple of seconds to get moving but eventually we moved over to the couch. He was shivering, so I grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around him. I made sure he was comfortable and then checked his wound again. I had to replace the bandage once more. I couldn't believe how much blood he was losing, and I was starting to grow deeply afraid of what would happen if he lost _too_ much. Gary must have seen the fear covering my face like a mask. Smiling through his grimaced expression, he reassured me.

"You're doing great, Misty." I knew he was only trying to make me feel better, but I couldn't keep from freaking out. I wished I had Brock here with me - he would know what to do…

"I don't know how to make it stop," I was becoming frantic. What if he _died_ on me? His death would be my fault - all because I couldn't save him. I attempted to calm my frenzied breathing - stressing myself out wasn't going to help me. The only way I was going to get through this was to stay calm. I wouldn't let Gary down, after all his bravery. If he could endure a bullet and not complain, I could get through this too.

It was in that moment of madness that I remembered a crucial detail. I don't know how, but I had never been thankful for a sudden brain snap in my life. I was going through it in my head, the running here, the scrambling to find a hiding place, when one word stood out, one sign we had passed when running down the street: DENTIST.

The Dentist. They would have painkilers. I had to go there.

"Gary," I said quietly. "I need you to sit tight for a few minutes, okay?" Gary's eyes snapped open.

"What are you talking about?" he stuttered, each word iced with pain, and each shard of it stabbing me with guilt. I had to do this for him - there wasn't going to be any talking me out of it.

"There is a Dentist across the street," I explained as calmly as I could, like it was the most simple task. "I'm going to go there and get some stronger painkillers."

"N-no!" he jerked forward and grabbed on to my arm, then grimaced from the movement. "You can't go, it's too dangerous! The streets are crawling with those freaks, and they're looking for _us_."

I said nothing for a moment, instead reaching to a cold cloth I had over my arm and patting it over his forehead. Gary looked terrible - his face was etched with sweat, dark circles underlined his eyes and his skin was pasty pale. He was getting weaker by the second, I could see it on his face. No, there was no way I could let him suffer like this.

"_Misty_," he called, frustrated at my lack of response. His eyes were desperate, but they were also exhausted and inflicted with pain.

"Don't try to stop me Gary. If I don't go, you might _die_," I had intended to remain emotionless, but my emotions were getting the better of me. I couldn't deny that I was terrified of going out there on my own, but I didn't want him to know that. I wanted to be brave like him, for him.

"I'll be back in a flash, alright? You just stay awake. Do you hear me? _Don't_ fall asleep. I don't want to lose you, Gary. _I can't._"

I didn't know where the words had come from, but they were out before I could stop my mouth from moving. My panic disallowed me from analysing my sudden feelings for Gary Oak, but I felt some sort of tie with him, like his existence was suddenly tied to mine. We were in this together, and I would not lose him.

He seemed taken aback by my words, for he only nodded awkwardly. I didn't have time to think about it though, I had to do this now. With sudden conviction I tore myself away from him and moved toward the front door of the house. A pull of the handle and I would be outside. A soldier out there and I would be dead. But it was a risk I had to take, and so with that pull of the handle I was outside in the silent, black night.

* * *

I stood pressed against the door frame like it was hiding me from the world outside that house, and glanced around frantically, hoping to find nothing but still silence.

And that I did.

I glanced down the road to my right. The street was dark and deserted. It seemed that there had been some disturbance here, for windows were broken and front yards were strewn with rubbish. But that wasn't what I was looking for. I cast my eyes around and sure enough the sign greeted me like a present at Christmas. It wasn't too far. I would have to cross the road and pass three houses before I came to the house-turned-dentist surgery.

The first step was the most difficult. Stepping out into a world that was suddenly not our own was beyond frightening. I just hoped I still had luck on my side.

Crossing the road would be the most risky part of the whole operation, but I was keen to get it over with. With a glance in every direction in my line of sight, I took my first step into the unknown, then my second, and then suddenly I was running, my steps out of my control and fuelled by adrenaline.

I made it to the other side in one piece, but I had no more time to contemplate. I kept running, past the two houses, until I found the Dentist surgery. Glancing around frantically, I sighed with relief when I found the street as silent as it had been when I had left the house. I approached the front door. Surely I wouldn't be so lucky as to find it open like the last house, but luck must have been on my side, for it was open. A hole in the window beside the door told me that this place had already been looted. Hoping that there was _something_ left for me, I swung the door open and was greeted by darkness. I had no idea how I was going to navigate, but I managed to find the supply cupboard with what little light I had. Obviously the looters hadn't been after the things I needed, and I stuffed my pockets with as many supplies as I could fit.

I felt like my erratic breathing was amplified in the still silence, and every small noise made me jump and whip around in terror. I couldn't get out of there fast enough, and I managed a swift and hidden run back to the house where I had left Gary.

Gary had never looked so relieved to see me - his eyes lit up and for a moment in the dim light he looked normal. But as I rushed to him, spreading the contents of my pockets out on the floor in front of me, his pained grimace returned. I looked at my supplies frantically, trying to work out what was the right thing to do with them. I had needles, morphine, antiseptic lotion and wound dressing, but my brain was running at a million miles a hour and I couldn't think straight.

"Misty," Gary said through heavy breathing. "Use the morphine. You're going to have to inject it into my arm," he directed. I glanced up at him, nodding obediently and trying desperately to calm myself enough to obey. I steadied my shaking hands enough to get the morphine inside the needle, and brought it up to his arm, before injecting it into his skin. I had never given an injection to a human before, but it wasn't too different from a Pokemon.

"You need to stitch up the wound," came Gary's next direction. My eyes widened in fearful hesitation - I couldn't do _that_.

"You can do it," he offered me his confidence. "I trust you."

"Gary…" I shook my head uncertainly.

"_I trust you_," he repeated, his dark eyes full of confidence, confidence in me.

I knew I had to. If I didn't stitch up the wound it would never heal properly, it might even get infected. Gary's livelihood was depending on me doing this, but I was no doctor. My brief brush with being a Pokemon nurse all those years ago when I was traveling with Ash hadn't in any way prepared me for this. I took a deep breath and stared into Gary's eyes, dull from the pain but somehow full of confidence for me. He needed me to do this, and I would do it for him.

"Okay," I nodded as confidently as I could. "What do I need?"

"A sewing needle and cotton," he explained calmly, and I quickly rushed off to look for the supplies.

I found them in a kitchen cupboard and rushed back to him. Under Gary's instruction, I managed to stitch his wound up and I covered it with a bandage soaked with antiseptic lotion. I had no idea what I was doing, and I was so fraught with uncertainty and panic that I can barely remember even doing it. Parts of it I can recall, Gary's laboured breathing as I pricked his arm with the needle, the cotton dragging through his skin. I think I was so irrevocably distraught that I blanked it from my memory without even trying.

* * *

We sat in silence afterward. We were physically and mentally exhausted but we could not afford the luxury of sleep now. There was too much on the line. I felt like everything was a dream, like I had fallen asleep and dreamed this horrible nightmare, and now I was waiting to wake up. I think I was so exhausted that I just couldn't process what I had just been through. I had never been so frightened in my life, and yet I felt numb. I glanced over at Gary, beside me. He was staring ahead, eyes weary yet somehow wide open. No doubt he was calculating ways for us to escape from here. Gary was never down for long, apparently. I had a newfound respect for Gary Oak. Just yesterday I was thinking about how much I couldn't stand him, about how much of a jerk he was. What a difference a day could make. Now I would do anything for him, and I trusted that he would do the same for me.

"You ok Misty?" he asked me, his voice tender with care. I appreciated him looking out for me, but _he_ was the one who'd been shot.

"I should be asking you," I wondered when Gary had become so selfless.

"I'm fine, thanks to your brilliant surgical skills." I raised an eyebrow in doubt.

"Seriously Misty, thank you for helping me…"

"Of course," I said, searching his eyes - all I could find was honesty, "you would have done the same for me…"

He nodded and turned away, focusing his gaze straight ahead.

"How did you know what to do with all that stuff?" I asked curiously. I may have done the work, but his expertise was what had got me there.

"I was once staying at the Pokémon Centre in a town in the middle of nowhere. I was there to investigate the way Lunatone behave in the moonlight, but during the day I passed the time by helping Nurse Joy out. Because it was such a small town, there was no hospital, so Nurse Joy was trained as a human doctor as well as a Pokémon doctor. She showed me a few things, what to do in emergencies, you know."

I nodded, taking in his story. My thoughts then drifted to the others. I wondered where they were, whether they had fared better or worse than us in their explorations of the city. I hoped like hell that they were waiting at our agreed meeting spot, safe and out of harm's way. I thought especially of Ash. I needed to know he was okay. The thought of something happening to him was unbearable…

"Thinking about the others?" I put his easy reading of my thoughts down to the fact that it was one of the only things I _would_ be thinking about.

"Yes," I admitted his correct judgement. "I hope they got out, I hope they're all okay…"

"I hope so too."

"How are we going to get out of here, Gary?" I asked, feeling my throat tighten slightly. I was terrified - if we stayed here, we could get found, if we left, we could get found. We were trapped and Gary couldn't move fast and there was nothing we could do. I was hoping for a brilliant idea, something to get us going, to get us back to our friends, but at the moment, Gary could offer nothing, nor could I. I thought of our Pokemon - could they help us in some way? But, I didn't want to put them in danger. Even their strongest attacks would be powerless against a bullet.

I sighed heavily, putting my head in my hands. Tears were threatening me, the aftershock of our brush with danger, but I didn't want him to see me cry. I wanted to be strong, but the urge to allow my terror to morph into tears was forcefully strong. It all came crashing down on me in that moment - we had nearly died, and we were facing death just by being here. I wasn't ready to die, and I wasn't ready to lose my friends and family and everything and everyone I held dear to me. It just wasn't fair. We didn't deserve this.

"It's going to be okay, Misty," with his calm words, I felt Gary's arm twist around my waist. I hadn't expected his touch to bring me comfort, but it did. I let myself sink into his embrace as he pulled me closer to himself. I felt like a small child in his muscular frame. I did not look up - I was embarrassed by my tears, I felt weak and ashamed. He didn't protest, just held me there in his embrace for a long time.

* * *

When I awoke to daylight, his arm was still tight around mine. I allowed myself to look up at him; his focused eyes moved to set upon mine. I felt myself flush under his gaze. A little of his colour had returned, only the tiniest bit, but it was noticeable after witnessing his pale, pasty complexion the night before. No matter what, though, he was breathtakingly handsome, perfect, if that were possible. He smiled, and for a few seconds all of my fears melted away beneath his gaze. Then I realised what I was thinking, and wondered where on earth such thoughts had come from.

"Morning," he spoke, his lips twisting up into a small smile.

"Morning," I hoped the hotness in my cheeks wasn't showing as a blush. I felt slightly awkward waking up in his arms - awkward, but not uncomfortable. In fact at that moment I wanted nothing more than to stay wrapped up in Gary's strong frame. Oddly, I had never felt more safe, or at ease…

"I should have been letting _you_ sleep," I pointed out, feeling guilty.

"It's alright. I couldn't sleep anyway."

"How is your arm?"

"Morphine worked wonders," he said. "I think it's starting to wear off though. I'll need another injection soon."

I nodded, shifting in his embrace. He winced as I did so.

"Sorry!" I grimaced.

"All good. So, I guess I'm pretty badass now that I've got a gunshot wound," he joked. I narrowed my eyes, wondering how he could be so blasé about almost being killed.

"What did it feel like?" I asked, genuinely curious. He considered the question for a few moments, trying to put words to the feeling I supposed.

"It was like…" he started, and then hesitated, changing his tune, "something I hope _you_ never have to experience."

I lay there unmoving for a while longer, not wanting to get up and face the world. It was nicer to just stay here.

"Misty-" he started, and I could feel his eyes on me, "last night you said something…" he trailed off, and my brain began working overtime, trying to process the events of the night before. It was all a jumbled mess of running and gunshots and blood and panic. But then I remembered, in the midst of all the terror was my sudden admission to Gary that I _didn't want to lose him_. I took an anxious breath. The words had come out against my will in a sudden fleeting moment of fear within a life or death situation. But did I mean them, or I was I just acting within the fear that had bound me so tight in that moment? The feeling was strong, stronger than anything I had ever felt. It was as though, if I had lost Gary, I would have lost myself. It was as though I felt something so strong for him that I couldn't bear to see him suffer. It was as though I loved him…

I paused my thoughts as though pausing a CD. Love? Gary? Those two words didn't go together. But there was something within me that tingled at his touch, that revelled in his embrace, that longed to be near to him... This feeling had been building up inside me since I'd first laid eyes on him one week ago. He was so different from the boy I remembered from my childhood, and somehow through taunting and infuriating me he had stolen my heart, and without me even realising it. How could this have happened? How did he do this to me? I didn't _do _this. I didn't let anybody get the upper hand on me – I was always in control of every situation, of every thought and feeling. But he had wittingly overcome me. All of the staring at me with those alluring, mysterious eyes, all of those comments about how Ash was _wrong_ for me, it had gotten to me. And then last night, seeing that other side to him – the brave, caring guy who had somehow helped _me_ through _him_ being shot – if I hadn't been with him I would have crumbled. I was at Gary's mercy now and admittedly I didn't want to be freed. I knew that I was stalling answering his question, but how could I explain it to him if I didn't even understand it myself?

I allowed myself to gaze into his dark eyes – a bad move, because I became trapped within the abyss of their immensely deep beauty. I felt all of my defenses crumble under his gaze, and like a dam bursting at the seams all of these feelings rushed to the surface.

Suddenly, I wanted nothing more than to be closer to him.

He used his good arm, still spotted with drops of dried blood, to push my hair off of my face. His touch sent electric currents running through my body, charged like Pikachu's Thundershock. I gasped at the affect it had on me, not expecting it. Nor did I expect Gary's face to inch closer to mine, leaving us mere centimetres apart. I was powerless to stop him, and I didn't even want to. I yearned to be closer to him, and it was me that pushed my lips onto his a few tense seconds later. I gave into my crashing emotions – they threatened to destroy me otherwise, and enveloped myself in him, kissing him with more passion than I knew I had. His own feelings became evident as he kissed me back, our movements first erratic and feverish before they became more smooth, natural. He moved his arm around to the small of my back, pulling my body closer to him. My whole body burned as though it had been enveloped by flames. Flames and electricity, pushing me closer and closer to him. I kissed him more forcefully; I never wanted this moment of euphoria to end. Everything else in the world, ever other worry that had burdened us a few seconds ago evaporated into the flames coursing through us. I didn't care that we were trapped in the middle of a war zone, I didn't care that we had no plan to escape, all I cared about was him. All I _wanted_ was him. I reached up and ran my fingers through his hair as our lips continued to intertwine. This strangely and unexpectedly felt more right than anything I had ever experienced. Our need for air forced us apart, leaving us heaving for air yet yearning for more. I met his eyes. They burned with the same fire that was running through my every fibre. I was certain at that moment, more certain than I had been about anything in my entire life.

I was in love with Gary Oak.

* * *

_To be continued..._

_

* * *

_

Whoa! Tense! This chapter goes out to all of the Egoshipping fans out there, so I hope you enjoyed it. It is a really fun and intense pairing to write, which is really testing me as a writer. I hope I made their affliction and affection believable. I am also no expert on _anything_ medical, so I'm sorry if I got some of those details wrong.

I love hearing from you, and thank you for all the reviews so far! They honestly, honestly keep me writing and keep me enthusiastic about this story. I am spending a lot of time getting these chapters right and I love hearing feedback. :)

Next chapter will answer a lot of questions, so until then, take care everyone.

xoxo

* * *

**Playlist:**

The Light – Sara Bareilles

First Floor People - Barcelona

Get Up, Get Up, Get Up - Barcelona

Flame Trees - Sarah Blasko

Don't Dream It's Over - Sarah Blasko

The Catalyst - Linkin Park

You Will Pull Through – Barcelona

Soldier On – The Temper Trap

Anywhere At All - Oceanship

Comfort You – Eskimo Joe

The Unavoidable Thing Between Us – Evermore

Hotblack – Oceanship

Gravity – Sara Bareilles

* * *

Credits: Chapter title is from the song 'Suddenly Everything Has Changed' by Bethany Joy Galeotti.

The quote at the start is from One Tree Hill. 


	5. The Trick is to Keep Breathing

**We Build Then We Break**

Chapter 4

_The Trick is to Keep Breathing_

_

* * *

_

Gary and I had a long wait before darkness would fall again. We had no plan, no idea of how we were going to escape, but still, the promise of nightfall was more than appealing.

He was exhausted, so I told him to sleep while I watched out for any potential danger. I figured we were pretty safe here for the moment; the soldiers seemed to have a lot their hands, too much for random house visits. And I doubted whether they would still be searching for us, after all, it's not like we had caused them any trouble.

I eyed Gary awkwardly from the couch on the other side of the room. My cheeks burned as I recalled our passionate little kissing session earlier. I didn't know what had come over me. We were in the middle of a war and yet all I could think about was _him_, how much I just wanted to be close to him. I didn't understand myself. I could not figure out whether my feelings were real or just spurred by the harsh beating my emotions had taken last night. But still…there was something about him, I knew, as my eyes set upon his face, peaceful now as he slept. He captivated me in a way that no one even had. Not even Ash. It was different with him…and…I think I _liked it_.

These thoughts, passing through my mind like it was a busy freeway, were cumbersome and complicated. My head felt like it wanted to explode. All I knew was that Gary made me feel safe and like everything was going to be okay. And though I knew that wasn't necessarily so, I still believed in him, because I had to believe in something right there, trapped in the middle of a war zone. He had pulled me through last night, and I would be forever thankful to him for that.

But now we faced our next challenge - escape. My mind had failed to produce any brilliant ideas on that topic. Sure, we could attempt to creep through the streets in the darkness until we got to the forest, but with the amount of soldiers running around out there it was too great of a risk. We wouldn't stand a chance against anyone we ran into, and they wouldn't waste a second killing us, judging from what we had seen last night. I thought of our Pokemon again, as I had the night before. Could they help us, without being put in danger? These people operated with weapons, and Pokemon might be strong against one another but against weaponry…they wouldn't stand a chance. They would die, and that thought was unbearable. Every one of my Pokemon was like a child to me. I had raised them and taught and guided them. If any of them were to get hurt, or worse…I was sure I wouldn't be able to cope with that, and I was sure Gary felt the same.

"Come up with any brilliant ideas?" my head snapped up at Gary's voice, and my cheeks reddened at his mischievous dark green eyes peering into mine. Would this awkwardness never stop? I felt self-conscious and weird around him after what had happened before. Hoping he hadn't noticed, I shook my head.

"No."

I glanced at my watch - 4:45. It wouldn't be long until it got dark.

"I was wondering if the Pokemon could help us, but I wouldn't want to risk them getting injured or…" I trailed off, and he nodded in agreement.

"How does your arm feel?" I asked. Gary was looking a bit better, but not much. I knew from the way he tried to cover up his pain with humour and arrogance. Such futile attempts at gallantry were lost on me - I could see straight through them. I wondered whether Gary would ever let his guard down around me, as I had for him last night with my tears.

"Alright," he gave me the answer I was expecting, but seemed unnerved by the way I was scrutinising him, for he glanced away, looking around the room aimlessly.

We fell into an uneasy silence, and I allowed my train of thought to drift down its uncertain tracks. Every other thought was for the others - where they were, how they were, whether they had made it out of the city or were trapped like us. The uncertainty was punishing me slowly and painfully, like a Nightmare attack I couldn't escape from.

"Why don't we go over the facts?" Gary suggested sensibly. "That might help us figure out what to do next."

I nodded, "Okay."

Our attempt to find information last night had provided us with a little, but we didn't have much to go by.

"So…from what _we_ know, Viridian City has been invaded by the freaks in the armour," Gary's eyes darkened, "and they are holding all of the civilians hostage. That includes everyone who went to the show they day they invaded, and that could be a lot of people. I'm assuming they invaded on Sunday, which is the show's busiest day."

"Makes sense. I wonder if they took people out of their homes as well. Maybe that's why all the doors were unlocked."

"Could be. They are obviously trying to exercise their power by holding these people hostage, and…killing them…if necessary."

I nodded sadly. I didn't know the man they had tried to shoot last night, but he was only sticking up for himself. It was a free country after all. Well, not anymore.

"What about the Dragonite?" I couldn't get the image of its dark, evil eyes out of my head. I had never seen a Pokemon so completely malevolent as the way that Dragonite had looked…and the way it was following that soldier around like they were two magnets…

"Right," Gary contemplated.

"It couldn't be Team Rocket…could it?" I was still sure they wouldn't be able to pull off something like this. It was too calculated, to well-plotted. Team Rocket were just petty Pokemon thieves.

"I don't think so," he shook his head, "they would have been wearing their uniforms."

I sighed, we were getting nowhere fast, and dusk was starting to darken the skies outside.

I stood and walked over to Gary. "Here, let me replace your bandage."

I blushed furiously as my hand touched his arm. Every touch sent fire through my bones. He eyed me curiously, but I wished he would look away. It was embarrassing, and I didn't have any space in my brain to think about it then and there. I just wanted to get out of here, and then we could discuss…us…

* * *

By the time I had changed the bandage and given Gary another morphine injection, it was dark. I shuddered - it was time to make plans, and we still hadn't a clue about how to escape from this house.

"Okay, so let's think. How are we going to get out of here tonight?"

It was on the word 'tonight' that we heard it - a loud thunk as the back door slammed open, and footsteps as somebody entered the house. My eyes widened and my heart pounded so vigorously, I thought it was going to jump right out of my chest.

I jumped up and pulled Gary to his feet, trying to ignore his painful groans as his arm was forced into a different position. I glanced around, but there weren't many places to hide. This house had one of those open-styled plans, and going to hide in one of the rooms would only trap us further. My heart sunk like a brick in water, as I came to the sudden realisation that this was it, we were about to die. But, I wouldn't go down without a fight. A broom stood against the kitchen pantry, and I grabbed it thoughtlessly and placed myself in front of a defenceless Gary, who looked like he was about to pass out from the sheer sudden shock.

All the while the steps kept coming. I fought the shudders that had engulfed me as I clenched onto the broom stick like it was my only hope of survival.

And then, I dropped it.

"ASH!"

The two figures froze halfway down the hallway. I heard Gary gasp in horror, But I knew, I don't know how I knew, but I knew it was him. I could see nothing in the darkness but I was certain.

"Misty?" a few more rushed steps and he appeared in the doorway, Pikachu on his shoulder and May in tow. I felt like I was going to collapse and burst and cry and fall apart all at the same time, but I could do nothing but stand there, staring at them. Then, I ran. I ran into his arms so fast I almost knocked him over with my sheer force. Tears forced themselves from my eyes as I held on to him for dear life, never wanting to let him go ever again. I was so out of control of my body that he practically had to pry me apart from himself.

"Misty…" he held on to my shoulders, kind but concerned eyes boring into mine, "What happened? Why are you here? And what were you planning to do with that broomstick?"

I let out a laugh as I gained some control over myself.

"I…we…we got seen and we ran here and Gary…" I explained, but my words were so panicked and rushed that they weren't making any sense. He shook his head confusedly and I took a deep breath.

"Gary's been shot," I explained more calmly. Ash's expression tightened in shock.

"What?" he glanced around the room until his eyes found Gary, learning up against the wall, clenching his arm but forcing a tight smile.

Ash ran over to him and I hugged May, who looked pale, but otherwise unscathed. Pikachu jumped off of Ash's shoulder and into my arms and greeted me in its language.

"What happened?" Ash glanced between Gary and I as he looked at his friend's bandaged arm.

"We were trying to get a good look at the show grounds when the soldiers saw us. They didn't even give it a second thought before shooting at us. We managed to lose them and escape to this house but they got him…" I trailed off emotionlessly, my mind unable to revisit the panic of last night.

"Are you alright?" Ash asked Gary, who nodded.

"Of course. Thanks to Misty."

I shook my head as Ash turned back to me, begging for an explanation. Gary spoke before I could get a word in.

"She's modest, but she saved me last night. She cleaned my wound and then went out into the street to the Dentist's surgery down the road to get supplies, then injected me with painkillers, stitched me up and bandaged me. I'd probably be dead if it weren't for her."

"Mist…" Ash's expression softened. "Are you alright?"

I shook my head. "It really wasn't like that. If Gary hadn't guided me through how to do it all I would never have been able to do it."

"Still…that was so brave of you Misty," May put a hand on my shoulder, but I shook my head, brushing their recognition away. It was my turn to ask questions.

"Where have you guys been? Didn't you get out of the city?"

"No," Ash shook his head. "The streets down by the gym are crawling with those weird soldiers, and we couldn't get out. We ended up hiding in a wardrobe all day, and at one stage we nearly got caught! Man, we were lucky to get out of that one." May looked slightly uncomfortable as Ash spoke animatedly about their experience. I wondered if something had happened between them, but I didn't have time to dwell on the idea. There were too many questions, and not enough time.

"Did you find out any info?" Gary asked.

"Not much," May shook her head. "But the Gym is under heavy guard. They must be keeping _something_ in there, and we're assuming it's all of the leaders from the conference…"

I gasped, thinking of my sisters being held captive. They must be terrified…

"What about you guys? Get any answers?" Ash asked, and I shook my head.

"Not much. All of the civilians are being held in the show grounds. They appear to be okay but the soldiers aren't tolerating anyone who steps out of line…"

"What do you mean?" May asked. I hadn't wanted to tell them, but it was only fair that we all knew what was going on.

"They shot someone."

"They're shooting civilians?" Ash asked as May gasped behind me. I nodded sadly as I nuzzled Pikachu's fur. It cooed in satisfaction.

"But…" I changed the subject quickly, "we can talk about that later. Right now we need to figure out a way to get out of here and back to the others."

"Right," Ash's eyes got that faraway look they got when he was concocting some sort of plan.

"The streets are dangerous," he explained. "May and I just got from where we were hiding to here, but there are soldiers everywhere…" he trailed off.

"The way I see it, getting out on foot is our only option," Gary said, and Ash nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I considered flying out on one of our Pokemon, but my Staraptor can't carry all of us, and they would probably see us from the sky, then we would have no chance…"

"If only…" I pondered; my brain was crackling in a million different directions like electrical currents to a circuit. And then, an idea formed, one that _could_ work, one that _had to_ work. "If we can distract them somehow, then we might have a chance to escape."

Everyone fell silent for a few short moments as we thought of a million different possibilities.

"Gible!" Ash suddenly blurted out, his eyes glowing with something I hadn't seen in them in a long while - hope. We all turned to him questioningly, wondering what epiphany he could have had and why it involved Gible, when he started to explain.

"I can get Gible to use Draco Meteor."

"Draco Meteor…" I pondered aloud, trying to put the pieces together.

"Draco Meteor fires an orb into the sky, which explodes into smaller orbs that then fall and crash onto the ground. They cause small explosions, not enough to do _too_ much damage but…"

"Enough to distract them," I finished his sentence, feeling that same sense of hope that was emanating from his chocolate eyes.

"You got it, Mist," he clicked his fingers and offered me an excited smile. "There will be so many explosions in so many different directions, the soldiers won't know where to go, and all of the convoys driving through the streets will race there. Then we can make our escape."

I glanced at Gary, who had remained silent through Ash's explanation. He looked impressed, and with a nod confirmed his confidence in the idea.

"It will work. It's risky, but it's the best chance we have. If we run into any soldiers, we'll just have to use our Pokemon."

We all glanced around at each other nervously. We were confident and ready to go, but still, we were terrified. We had seen what was out there, and it wasn't pretty, but if we ever wanted to get back to Brock, Dawn and Kenny, we had to take a chance and hope luck would be on our side.

We spent fifteen minutes or so going over the finer details and mapping out our planned path out of the city, but nervous energy was rising within all of us and we were eager to get going. I longed to feel safe again, and I knew I wouldn't until we were back with the others.

I stuffed my pockets with the remaining supplies to take care of Gary's wound. May thought of making a sling for his arm so he would be more comfortable, so we did so with a pillowcase from the house. I made a mental note to look up who it was that lived here when this was all over and thank them…if they were still alive.

* * *

We crept in silence through the house to the front door. I pulled the curtain aside to peer out of the window, but silence ensued on the street outside. I nodded to Ash, and he pulled out a Poke Ball. He let it go in silence and a red glow illuminated the room for a few seconds, before it merged into the small Dragon type Pokemon. Its excited call seemed excruciatingly loud in the tense silence that engulfed us, but with another quick glance outside I found that the street was as still as it had been a few seconds ago.

"Ok, Gible," Ash whispered his instructions to Gible, who was raring to go. "We're gonna go out onto the street and I want you to use Draco Meteor, okay? Wait for my command." Gible nodded obediently - as with all of Ash's Pokemon, it was well trained and keen to please its trainer.

Ash nodded that he was ready and we opened the door and crept outside onto the sidewalk. I held my breath, half-expecting a soldier to come running down the street, see us and shoot us all, but silence ensued. Then I realised how violent my thoughts had become and it scared me.

Gible got into position and waited for Ash. It seemed to take him forever to command the attack but I'm sure that was just how it seemed in my head. Finally, he nodded at his Pokemon and within a few seconds an orange orb started forming in its mouth. Its light was brilliant as it got brighter and brighter, before Gible let out a yell and sent the orb of light streaming into the sky. It went so high that it looked tiny against the dark sky, before it cracked and broke apart into smaller fragments and went flying through the air in different directions.

It was time. Ash was already calling Gible back to its ball, thanking it quietly.

"Ok let's go!" he called, and as the orbs started exploding around the town, we ran.

And ran.

And ran.

The commotion we caused was on a larger scale than expected. Alarms went off around the town and sirens rang through the night sky. We heard the screeching of car tyres as they raced towards the various sights of the explosions.

Still, we ran.

Our plan was to keep to the back streets. Hailing from Kanto, Ash, Gary and I knew our way around Viridian pretty well, so the route we had mapped out was working for us so far. We reached the end of a dark, deserted street and turned on to the next. We got about halfway without running into any trouble, until we reached the end of that street.

* * *

It was the darkest part of town, and the most damaged from what I had seen. Windows were smashed and there was rubbish and junk strewn everywhere. As we crept out into the darkness my heart dropped down into my stomach. Two soldiers. They were kicking things around and chatting, obviously too lazy to go and investigate the commotion. We all froze, but it was too late by then. They had seen us.

One of them laughed. I will never forget that - a cold, heartless laugh coming from a man whose face I couldn't even see. Ash was already reacting, and he ordered Pikachu to use Thunderbolt. The electric mouse jumped forward, fearless even in the face of possible death. Sparks of electricity cracked and sizzled as it emanated from its body and flew towards the two soldiers. Yes! I thought, feeling a surge of adrenaline pulse through me - that would take them down and give us enough time to get away unseen.

But, it wasn't to be.

"Oh no…" I heard Gary mutter. My heart lurched.

Their armour…the electricity bounced off of it, it had no affect. More laughter, this time from both of them, and then the unmistakable sound of rifles being cocked.

May gasped, and for a few seconds it was like we had been frozen in time. Then, everything happened at once. Ash and Gary threw Poke Balls, and out came Umbreon and Glalie.

Ash turned to May and I. "Go! Run! We'll catch up with you!" his panic-stricken eyes pleaded us. I hesitated as the soldiers sent out a Pokemon each - Blaiziken and Venomoth. My eyes narrowed sharply at the Pokemon - their eyes…they had those same evil, shadowy eyes as that Dragonite back at the show grounds. It was unmistakable, it was pure viciousness emanating from their eyes, their souls, as if an aura of pure malicious evil surrounded them. They were tensed, ready to battle - they looked ready to _kill_.

"Hows about a little deal," the same soldier who had laughed spoke - his voice was deep and smug. Blue wings adorned his back, while the other had yellow ones, and I wondered whether the colours were some sort of ranking system.

"If you can beat us in a Pokemon battle, we'll let you go. But if you lose…" I couldn't see his face, but I imagined an ugly, evil smile was planted across it. "…We'll kill you. And take your two girlfriends for dessert."

I felt like vomiting right then and there as the man eyed May and I - not that I could _see_ his eyes, but I knew he was looking at us hungrily, and it repulsed me. Gary grit his teeth in anger and let out a string of insults at the men, who only laughed, making him more and more angry. They were clearly trying to get at him, and it was working. Ash clenched his fist. I'd never seen him so angry - he looked like he could leap forward at the men and rip them apart with his bare hands. Instead, he let his fist fall to his side.

"Fine," he spoke calmly, and I gasped at his confidence.

"Wait for us at the next corner Misty, c'mon," Ash turned away from them and implored desperately.

"But Ash…" May's hesitation indicated she felt the same way as me, but the boys weren't leaving us much choice.

"Okay," I gave in, watching as the two men stood ready to attack.

I glanced at May for a few seconds, and we ran, leaving the commotion of the battle behind us.

We ran down the dark street using the route we had planned, until we reached the next corner. I pulled May into a shop doorway.

"Did you see those Pokemon's eyes?" I said, trying to slow my panicked breathing down.

"Yeah," she nodded through her own panting. "What were they? They weren't _normal_ Pokemon."

"I know," my mind was racing but it was mostly focused on one thing - Ash and Gary. Could they beat those _monsters_?

* * *

Waiting for them to find us was like waiting for imminent torture. I had every confidence in them - Ash and Gary were two of the finest trainers in the world. Gary, even being a researcher, was exceptional. If anyone could do it, it was them. But still, I couldn't help but feel that all-too-familiar sense of negative dread sweep through me.

What if they couldn't win?

What if they were too powerful?

What if those disgusting, vile men were coming to find us?

What if, what if, what if?

My mind was reeling as I stuck my head out into the street for about the hundredth time, and for about the hundredth time, it was empty. For once I _wanted_ there to be something there - I wanted Ash and Gary to be there!

Various commotion could be heard in the distance - we had obviously caused quite a stir with our little distraction. I just hoped it would buy us enough time to get out of here… We hadn't really counted on getting into a Pokemon battle.

I had no conception of time, but I'm sure it was fifteen minutes later, and there was still no sign of them. I felt suddenly hot, like I was spinning out of control. May didn't look much better - she was paler than before, and I mean it - by this stage I thought she was an actual ghost. I felt like I should try to comfort her but I couldn't find the strength anywhere inside of me. I was convinced we were goners - that this was it, this was how it was going to end.

And then, there they were.

The sight of the two of them waking towards us was like medicine - it cured me instantly. Smug, confident expressions adorned their faces as they approached. I checked a few times to make sure it was them. It definitely was. As they got closer May and I stepped out of our hiding spot, and we ran towards them.

"All done," Ash said calmly with a confident wink at Gary.

"You won? What _happened?_" I had to confine my panicked shriek into a whisper so that the whole city wouldn't hear it.

"Of _course _we won. But, there's no time to mull on the details," Gary spoke just as confidently as Ash "They won't be bothering us any time soon, thanks to Glalie's Ice Beam."

My mouth stood agape at their dismissiveness of a potentially life-threatening situation - they were acting as though they'd just beat an overconfident trainer on the side of the road.

"Come on," Ash's eyes turned serious. "Let's get out of here before we run into anyone else."

With that, we were off again. As we ran, I noticed Gary wincing as his arm was tossed around violently. Even in the sling, running was not good for it. He would never admit to that though, he would just say he was fine, as he always did…

We managed to make it the rest of the way without too much trouble. Once we were out of the main part of town, the streets were pretty quiet, and as Ash and Gary had promised, those soldiers did not come looking for us. The forest looked like an oasis as we approached. I thought we would never see its endless array of trees and shrubs and branches. We plunged into it like it were a pool on a hot day. I was never a huge fan of the forest (too many bugs for my liking) but I never loved it as much as I did at that moment. It was freedom, it was our escape, it was safety…

* * *

We didn't stop - we had a long way to go before we would find the others. I glanced at my watch - 12:47 am. It wouldn't be long until we had to meet them. I was growing anxious - I just wanted to see them and know they were all okay.

The trek through the forest was long and exhaustion was starting to creep up on me. Any little noise made me snap backwards to check who was behind us. I wondered if I would be like that for the rest of my life.

It was 1:34 am when we finally reached the point where we had left the others.

My eyes fell upon them like I hadn't seen them in ten years, and I lost control of my body as I fell into Brock's arms. I knew nothing of what the others were doing, I could hear nothing but Brock's soothing words as his strong, compassionate arms embraced me.

It was him, it was him and we were safe, all together again.

* * *

I don't remember much of the walk back to Pallet Town. Brock kept his arm around me the whole way, but I was so tired I could barely acknowledge that I was even walking. I knew we had _so much_ to discuss. I wanted to know everything about their experience and what they had found out. But I would have to wait, and I was too tired to process anything anyway.

When we got back, we had an argument about whether to leave for the mountains right then or wait until tomorrow night. I don't even remember what the arguments for and against were - but we ended up deciding to leave then. Brock, Dawn and Kenny had spent the day getting supplies together and packing them into Gary's Jeep.

Brock sat me down and gave me a cup of coffee as the others got ready to go. I didn't really feel like drinking it but it did help to wake me up a little bit. I would need that for the trek back to our spot in the mountains.

* * *

Our trip back into the mountains was slow and painful torture. We drove the Jeep through the streets cautiously, lights off, and luckily we didn't run into any convoys. They were probably all still trying to work out what had happened in town, I thought smugly. Gary couldn't drive with one arm, so Brock drove instead. He parked where we had before and we decided to leave everything except the essentials there and come back for them tomorrow. The Jeep was hidden - we were so far in you couldn't see it from the outside roads, so it would be safe.

And then was the incredulous task of finding our secret hiding spot. It was dark, so navigating was tremendously impossible, and we couldn't use torches in case the light could be seen from the distance and someone noticed us. I fell and scraped myself so many times I was becoming numb. We made it eventually; I had no idea what the time even was, or if I was even awake or dreaming, or dead? I remember Brock laying out my sleeping bag for me, and I fell upon it, more physically and mentally exhausted than I had been in my whole life.

My head was spinning, dizzying circles of fear and pain and blood…the events of the past two days were merging into one big nightmare, but my exhaustion fought it off valiantly, and I let it lead me to the peaceful darkness that was sleep.

* * *

_To be continued…_

_

* * *

_

Hey guys! This chapter was supposed to be longer, but I decided to split it in two. Answers are coming though, so bare with me! I have been stuck home for the past week because I had my wisdom teeth out on Thursday in the hospital - hence the quick update. I really enjoyed writing this chapter so I hope you liked it just as much! I appreciate any and all feedback from my readers so if you leave me a little review I will be most appreciative.

See you all next time!

* * *

**Playlist:**

Plans - Bird of Tokyo

We Won't Run - Sarah Blasko

Anywhere At All - Oceanship

Breathe Again - Sara Bareilles

Fader - The Temper Trap

Tomorrow - Nic Cester

* * *

Credits: Chapter title is from the song of the same name by Garbage. 


	6. Soldier On

**We Build Then We Break

* * *

**

**Chapter 5**

_Soldier On

* * *

_

"_Who wants to know_

_All that is gold is rusted_

_No one will know_

_When seasons cease to change, and_

_How far we've gone_

_How far we're going to_

_It's the here and the now_

_And the love for the sound_

_Of the moments that keep us moving_

_Waves crash along_

_The battered, lonely lighthouse_

_Tomorrow she's gone_

_And if not someday, somehow_

_Are these hands a waste_

_Well this side of mortality is_

_Scaring me to death_

_To death_

_Don't think about it at all_

_Just keep your head low_

_And don't think about it at all"

* * *

_

When I awoke, the sky was dark - it was night time. For a few blissful moments I thought we were still on our camping trip, but then, as though a dam had broken, the painful memories came flowing back - the trip to Viridian, the soldiers, the shooting, our turbulent escape… Rain fell softly; its soft pitter-patter calmed me slightly. I sat up, glancing around to find the others.

"Misty, you're awake," I turned to find May sitting near me. She took her headphones out of her ears and placed her iPod atop her sleeping bag. Glaceon sat in her lap, asleep as she petted it softly.

I met her concerned stare with a nod.

"How long have I been asleep for?"

"About…nineteen hours," she stated. "How are you feeling?"

"I don't know…" I admitted. "Confused, I guess."

She nodded and glanced down at Glaceon.

"How come you're not sleeping?" I asked her, glancing around at the others, who were snoring softly in their sleeping bags.

"Can't," May shook her head with a small smile. She looked exhausted, like she hadn't slept in days. Her eyes were dull and her normally peachy skin pale. Dark circles were visible under her eyes.

"Are you okay?" I felt a pang of concern for May - I knew she wasn't dealing with any of this well, and I felt like none of us had the time or energy to console one-another.

"Yeah…" she said unconvincingly. "I just hate all of this… I hate not knowing what's going on. I'm worried about my parents, and Max…"

"I know…" I knew exactly how she was feeling. Uncertainty was the worst feeling amongst all the others.

I wanted to tell her that were were going to be okay, that we would get through this and no one would get hurt, or worse, but how could I make promises like that? I knew nothing, except that our world had suddenly been turned upside down, our country stolen from us.

"You're so brave, Misty…doing what you did for Gary."

I shook my head. "I think you just…do what you need to do in a situation like that. I'm sure every one of us would have done the same thing."

"I can't even describe how scary it was, waiting in that wardrobe all day. With every noise I thought that was it, we were goners. Thank God I was with Ash, or I'm sure I would have lost it…"

"Ash is great in a crisis," I said with a smile. I suddenly remembered May's awkwardness when Ash spoke of their entrapment. The same uncomfortable stare blanketed her face now as she said, "Yeah, he is."

Silence lingered between us and May bit her lip nervously.

"You know you can talk to me about anything, May. What's wrong?" I prodded her kindly. I knew how she must be feeling - I had my own problems to deal with, with Gary, after all - but I also knew keeping it inside was the wrong thing to do, especially now, with so much else flooding our minds.

"I know…" she sighed. "It's just…Ash…"

"Did something happen?"

"I haven't told anyone this, not even Dawn."

"Don't worry, I won't tell a soul," I promised her with a small smile. I felt a pang of discomfort - hearing May talk about Ash was undoubtedly difficult - but I wouldn't let it get in the way of our friendship. Right now, May needed a friend she could talk to, and I wanted to be that person for her.

"It's just…it's just that I kissed him. I kissed Ash."

"And…did he kiss you back?" I asked in hesitant anticipation.

"Yes."

"Well that's great! …Right?"

"The truth is, I don't know. Everything was so chaotic. I was a mess, and Ash was so comforting and kind and it just…happened. But, now things are weird between us."

"Maybe you just need to talk to him. He probably feels the same way as you," I was wondering if I would be able to take the same advice when I came to dealing with Gary.

"You're probably right. I've been avoiding him all day."

"How do you feel about him?"

"I…I think I love him, Misty," my heart stung with her words, but I couldn't let her see. Hearing her say she _loved _himwas more difficult than I thought. Even if I knew it already, there was some part of me that believed, or hoped, perhaps it wasn't true, but that part of me was wrong.

"Then, I think you need to tell him."

"But what if he doesn't feel the same? What if that kiss was just a heat of the moment thing?"

"Trust me, I don't think you need to worry about that. Ash worships you, May."

"I don't know…"

"Listen May, if there's one thing I've learnt from the past few days, it's that life is too short to keep secrets. I saw an innocent man _die_ out there. What if he was keeping a secret from the person he loved? She won't ever know now…" I trailed off. May nodded sadly, her eyes glowing in the dim moonlight shining from above.

"If you love him, you should tell him. Trust me…"

"You're right. I know you're right…" she glanced back down at Glaceon. I still wasn't convinced she fully trusted me, but I was surprised a few moments later when she met me with a smile.

"Thanks Misty. Thanks for listening to me. You give good advice."

"That's what friends are for, right?" I smiled back at her, a real smile, something I hadn't felt in days. I didn't know about the giving good advice part, but it was nice to feel like I was helping, doing something right.

I didn't have many female friends; I was always the tomboyish girl who hung around with the rough boys. The old me would never have been able to befriend May. I would have felt too threatened by her beauty and her talent and her obvious affection for Ash. But my life experiences had changed me. It felt _good_ to have another girl to talk to, heart to heart. There were some things that only another girl could understand, after all, and there was one thing playing on my mind that I _had_ to get off my chest, or I felt I might burst, or fall apart, or something…

"Hey May…can I talk to you about something?"

"Sure," she looked curious and surprised at the same time.

"I understand your situation more than you know because…something similar happened to me…" her eyes widened as I added the last part to the puzzle, "with…Gary…"

"Really? I _knew_ he had a thing for you!" I paused, shocked.

"You did?"

"Yeah! He is _always_ staring at you. It's so obvious."

I blinked in surprise, wondering if the others had realised the same thing.

"So…you kissed?"

"We kissed," I blushed, thinking about that moment. I'm sure May noticed because she snickered quietly.

"And…how do you feel about him?"

"That's the thing. I don't _know_. Gary is…_annoying_ and cocky and…he's just a jerk. But there's this other side to him that I never got to see until now…"

"You know what I think?" May asked, but she didn't wait for me to answer. "I think you should take your own advice."

I let out a short sigh. "You're probably right about that."

She giggled, and I felt my frown give way to a smile. For a few moments I felt like we were young and carefree again, discussing boys and relationships as though they were our biggest problems. I would give anything for that to be so.

I wasn't completely confident, but I felt better. My biggest decision was trying to determine how Gary fit into my life. Were my feelings real, or was my passion just a fear-induced moment that meant nothing outside of it?

We chatted for a few more minutes and then I forced May to get some sleep - I convinced her that she would need it to prepare for her big moment with Ash, and I promised I'd stay awake and keep lookout, just in case. I thought it was probably a good idea anyway. We were in complete solitude out here but you can't be too careful.

* * *

The few hours passed slowly as I lay in the dark, looking up at the moon, begging it to give me some answers. But as the sun came up behind the rain clouds I had made no progress. My problems were still my problems, and I had no idea how I was going to solve them.

Brock awoke and came straight over to me. I offered him a smile - he had really helped me back there and I was so grateful to him for that.

"How are you feeling?" he knelt down beside me, his concerned, brotherly eyes checking me over. "You look a little pale…"

I shook my head, brushing his concern away.

"I feel okay. I was asleep for a long time, huh?"

"A whole day. Everyone was really worried about you, especially May," we glanced to her sleeping form, curled up in her sleeping bag.

"Really?"

"Yeah, she stayed up the whole time, she wouldn't leave your side."

I smiled. "She's a good friend."

"Speaking of good friends…" he glanced around at Gary, still asleep. "You did a great job with Gary's wound. I'm so proud of you."

I felt myself blush slightly as I shook my head.

"I just did what I had to do…"

"I know, but I can only imagine what you went through."

"Yeah it was pretty awful…" I nodded, suddenly finding myself blinking back tears. Brock rubbed my back comfortingly as I wiped them away.

My face turned serious. "So Brock, what did you find out there? Do we have any answers yet?"

"Well…" he hesitated, which annoyed me. I just wanted to know.

"We'll all sit down together and talk. Right now, I'm going to get you some breakfast, you must be starving."

I couldn't deny that my stomach was complaining like a starving child, so I let it, and him, go.

He came back with Weet Bix and milk. I ate it like I hadn't eaten in days. I think even Brock was surprised. He said I'd beaten Ash's record.

* * *

The others awoke progressively - Gary was first. He sauntered over to me, his arm in the same sling we had created for him back at the house in Viridian.

"How are you doing?" he asked. He looked concerned for me, and I was sort of touched by that.

"I'm okay… How's your arm?" He glanced down at it with a smirk.

"It's alright. Brock says you did a wicked job with the stitching. Maybe you should have been a doctor."

I laughed off his suggestion and an awkward moment passed between us. I glanced down at my lap as he stared at me intensely. Once again I felt like he was reading my thoughts. Without a word, he walked away, and over to where Brock was. I watched him go, knowing I'd have to talk to him sometime about what was going on between us.

* * *

Later on, we sat in a circle by the water. Brock had called a 'group meeting', but I'm sure it was just a 'fill Misty in on what's going on' meeting.

"I think it's important that we all sit down together and talk about the other night. We need to start putting the facts together so that we can better understand our current situation," he explained. He sounded like a professional soldier. You could always rely on Brock to organise things in a crisis. He was just good like that.

'How about I write stuff down?" Dawn got up from her place next to Kenny and walked over to where her bag was. She returned with a matching pink notepad and pen. _Very _Dawn, I thought with a smile.

Beside me sat May, and Ash was on her other side. Gary sat on _my_ other side. I was glad he was next to me rather than in front of me - having him watch me constantly made me nervous, and right now, I had to concentrate.

"Let's start with what Misty and Gary found at the show grounds," Brock nodded towards Gary and I. Gary took over the explanation before I could open my mouth to speak, but I was grateful to him for that.

"Civilians are being held in the show grounds. They are being treated justly but the soldiers don't tolerate misbehaviour. We saw a man get shot in cold blood for arguing with them, so they're not messing around…" Gary trailed off. I felt sick again, the same way I had felt when I'd heard that gunshot fire.

"The show grounds are under heavy guard by soldiers, and so is the rest of the city by the amount of soldiers crawling the streets."

"So we are assuming that one day while we were away, these people invaded Viridian City and took everyone at the show hostage."

"It might not have just been everyone at the show, people may have been forced from their houses. Viridian is a big city, and if they were planning a take over they wouldn't want too many stray people running around the city as potential threats," I added, to which Brock and the others nodded in agreement. I was thinking logically now - my brain seemed to have kicked into gear.

Gary continued, "Something else that stood out, was the lack of Pokemon in the show grounds, save for one - a Dragonite, which was following one of the soldiers around like it was its slave."

I noticed Ash tense up from the corner of my eye - if there was one thing he couldn't handle, it was abuse to Pokemon.

"There was something strange about it though. Its eyes seemed to glow a dark purple, and it looked unnaturally evil. I think they might have done something to it."

"Like what?" Ash asked, his features tight with concern.

"I don't know… But the Pokemon we fought when we escaped had that same dark look in their eyes…"

"Okay, what about you Ash and May?" Brock moved on.

"We went to the Gym, and boy, getting there was a task in itself. There were soldiers everywhere. The Gym was under _heavy_ guard. They weren't taking any chances of anyone getting in there. So, we can only assume that the reason for this is that the Gym Leaders are in there. But, we don't know _why_."

"Ok…Dawn, Kenny and I had an interesting night," Brock began, and he piqued my interest immediately.

"We didn't find much by wandering the streets - there don't seem to be many others like us around, at least not in the areas we visited. We were about to retreat when we got caught…"

I gasped, wondering _why_ Brock had failed to tell me this _urgently_.

"…By Jessie, James and Meowth."

What?

"What?" my words echoed my thoughts. My mouth hung open, I could not believe it.

"It seems they are working for the enemy… But they seemed happy to see us, or, happy to see us un-captured."

"What did they say?" I was so shocked I was frozen on the spot; the only thing moving was my mouth.

"They couldn't say much, they said that if someone saw them with us they would have to capture us," Dawn explained. "But, they did say something about Team _Cipher_."

"Team Cipher?" I'd never heard of them.

"They also told us that we'd better be careful not to get seen, as their boss knows we're missing from the group and he is looking for us."

I felt my throat tighten from that all too familiar feeling of fear.

"So…Team Rocket are working with this 'Team Cipher', whoever they are?" I put the pieces together quickly.

"It seems so," Brock confirmed my suspicions.

I sat back in shock. I certainly wasn't expecting a development like this.

"We heard some soldiers coming, and Jessie told us to run. They promised they wouldn't tell their Boss they had seen us," Dawn explained. "I don't think they want in on whatever is going on. I guess they're probably being forced into it."

"Okay… So…does anyone know who this Team Cipher are? Or what they're doing?"

"No," Brock shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. "Although, I'm sure I've heard the name somewhere before, on the news or in the newspapers or something."

I wished I'd taken more notice of the news - I seldom had time to read a newspaper and politics and world affairs didn't interest me too much. Now I'd give any thing for just a little piece of information.

As the others speculated aimlessly, I leaned back against the soft grass below us; my head was spinning in fifty different directions, which only made me totally confused.

Team Cipher.

Team Cipher had taken over Viridian, and who knows where else.

I knew nothing of them, but I hated them already.

What reason did they have for doing this? It could only be for evil. Another plot to take over the world? It didn't surprise me that Team Rocket were their ally. But this type of violence was something we had never seen, not in our lifetimes. What could we do in the face of such savage brutality?

Fight. I wanted to fight them. I already knew that, though I hadn't expressed it to the others. I wanted to take revenge on them for taking our friends and families captive, for shooting Gary, for stealing our world away from us. It wasn't fair. Nothing was fair anymore, and I hated it, and I was powerless to stop it. Helplessness infuriated me, and I knew Ash felt the same, if not all the others. If there was _anything_ I could do to help stop this, I wanted to do it. I would do anything. I knew what our families, what my sisters would say - that we should stay in hiding, that they just wanted us to be safe, not to take any unnecessary risks. But I couldn't just sit back and watch as our world was taken over by evil.

* * *

It was the next day when we found out the extent of the situation. Gary had brought his grandpa's old radio with him on our trip back into the mountains. Although we hadn't found any radio stations that day, I had to keep myself busy somehow, so I kept trying, at least a few times a day. That day, I sat with May and Brock. The sun was shining and it was quite warm. I was playing around with the radio and, as usual, hearing nothing but static. I was aware that the batteries were running very low but I saw no reason to try to prolong their life - after I didn't really expect to find anything, but it made me feel better to know that I was trying _something_.

It was Brock's question that piqued my interest.

"What are all those other buttons for?"

I looked down at the radio and turned it over - sure enough, on the side were a number of knobs and buttons.

"I'm not sure…" I admitted, I didn't know much about radios. Analogue versions were so old-hat these days that I probably hadn't seen one like this since I was a child.

"Let's see…" I passed the radio to Brock, and he inspected it carefully. Then, he looked up with an incredulous smile.

"Misty…this radio can pick up stations from all over the world. We've only been listening to local stations."

"What?" my heart leapt at his revelation. We were _craving_ information, we just wanted to understand what was happening. Without such information, we had no hope, no plan, and no idea what to do.

He played with a few knobs and dials. I didn't ask how he knew so much, I could barely wait for him to do that before he handed it back to me.

"Okay, turn the dial like you were doing. We might have some luck."

"Guys!" May called the others. "Come here, quick!"

The others, who were scattered around the campsite, rushed over to us.

"Brock figured out we might be able to locate overseas stations on the radio," I explained as I put my finger over the dial and started to turn it.

Everyone was silent, waiting, but at first all I got was more static. My heart fell - but a few seconds later my hope was restored - a voice rang out through the speakers. We all gasped, but no one spoke - then we realised it was in another language. I kept turning the dial, slowly enough that we wouldn't miss something. We got some kind of African music, another language we didn't understand, a Rihanna song, and then, finally, something useful.

It was a lady's voice, but I didn't recognise the accent.

"It's Australian," Gary said - I didn't ask how he knew, we were all intent on listening to the voice.

"…Have now taken control of Viridian City and Saffron City. Citizens are being held in camps under humanitarian conditions. They are allowed medical treatment if required. All Pokemon have been confiscated. The Gym Leaders and Elite Four are being kept under strict supervision. Cipher's Leader, Ardos, had this to say to the world…"

Another voice, a voice that oozed with what I could only describe as pure, unadulterated evil, echoed through the airwaves.

"Your Gym Leaders and Elite Four are being held by our officers. Any attempts made at giving them freedom will result in their imminent deaths. We are Team Cipher, and we are the new Government. Anyone who does not follow instructions from Cipher agents will not be tolerated. We have complete control over Orre, and we will soon have control over the rest of the country."

I felt a shiver run through my spine as the newsreader came back on.

"Cipher are using _Shadow Pokemon_'. Shadow Pokemon were first created by Cipher in the far-off region of Orre, where Pokemon trainers Wes and Michael successfully foiled two of their plans. They were unable to do so this time, however, which has resulted in Cipher taking hold of Orre and now, Kanto. Shadow Pokemon are created using technology developed by Cipher, which closes a Pokemon's heart, leaving them incapable of feelings or emotions. Pokemon are unable to level up during this process, but they are enabled powerful Shadow-type attacks, which have high effectiveness against all types of Pokemon. Cipher have taken the Pokemon of the Gym Leaders and Elite Four and they have been converted, and are now being used against the country as Shadow Pokemon. We suspect that the Viridian Gym is their headquarters. In an interesting twist, Team Rocket appear to have joined Cipher in their takeover and are assisting in the operation."

"Cipher have warned other nations not to get involved. Already America and The United Kingdom has prepared its troops and Australia will do the same. However, with the situation so fragile help has not been sent as-."

The batteries and the radio died then, leaving us in silence. The others looked the way I felt - shocked, angry, upset. We were trying to process each fact, but there was so much that I had to put my hand to my temples to stable my thoughts.

"So it's true," Brock was the first to speak. "We're at war."

"They're…they're using Pokemon to do their dirty work. That's disgusting," Ash's eyes were dark with anger, his brow creased as he clenched his fists.

I looked over at Gary, who was strangely silent. His head was down, eyes gazing down at the ground as though he were lost in the patterns made by the grains of sand.

"We need to decide what we're going to do," Ash said softly as he glanced around at us, our shoulders heaved, we were carrying the weight of the world atop them.

"We can't sit back and do nothing," Gary glanced up, his brown eyes blazing now. "We have to fight back."

"How?" Dawn asked him. "What can _we_ do against _them_?"

"There's got to be something," I nodded at Gary, who seemed pleased I'd taken his side. "We don't have to attack them directly, but we could hinder their operation somehow. We just need to find out more about them and their operation…"

Nobody had any ideas, and our heads were spinning from all of the information, so we decided to give our thoughts a rest for a while. Things were getting tense, and the last thing we needed was for everything to blow up into another argument. We had to stick together, physically and mentally.

I walked over to Gary, who was peering at his wound dressing uncomfortably. It was time for us to talk; I had to break the ice between us somehow.

"Do you want me to change it for you?" his eyes snapped up at me, but his features softened immediately.

"Sure."

I grabbed some fresh bandage and antiseptic lotion and we walked down the shallow stream to the cool, shady, and most importantly private spot where Gary had interrupted my thoughts about _Ash _mere days ago. It was sort of ironic that I'd ended up back there with him. We climbed atop the rock formation and sat in between the wild ferns and other plants that also called this spot home. We sat facing each other as I took his arm and started unwrapping the bandage. Touching him sent shivers down my spine, and I felt like he could feel my tense awkwardness just by sitting in front of me. Keeping my eyes away from his, I preceeded to take off the bandage completely. I looked at the wound - it was pretty gross, but the tomboy in me thought it was kind of cool. I put antiseptic lotion over the wound. Gary clenched his teeth but still he had not cried out in pain. I admired him for that, but I hoped he knew I would not think any less of him if he did. After all, he was only human, not Superman. I replaced the bandage quickly, I was getting pretty good at this stuff now. I sort of enjoyed looking after him, it made me feel like I was doing something good, something positive, something that was _helping_.

I couldn't hide behind my duties anymore after that, and I had no choice but to hand him his arm back and look up at him. When I finally did, all I discovered was a snicker upon his annoyingly handsome face.

"I'm driving you crazy, aren't I?" he more stated than asked. Our faces were inches apart, and mine turned red instantly.

"Shut up, Gary!" my defenses flew up instantly, and I pushed myself away from him angrily. But I wasn't really angry at him, I was more angry at myself, because I _wanted _him and I couldn't stop feeling that way.

"What are you afraid of?" he asked me, his smirk dissolving into seriousness. I sighed, knowing I had to be honest with him. We were living in each other's pockets now, and wasn't like I could avoid him.

"I'm afraid of the way I feel," I stated, and he seemed taken aback by my honesty.

"How do you feel?"

"I don't know. I've never…" I stammered uncomfortably, glancing down to escape his intense eyes. "I've never felt like this before."

"I know."

"Know what?" I glanced back up, facing him again.

"I know how you feel, because I feel the same."

"But…"

"But what?"

"This can't happen between us Gary, not now, we're in the middle of a war…"

"Of course it can," he dismissed my concerns with a few simple words. His eyes burned, and I was captured within them as they moved closer to mine, and then our lips met once more, and suddenly I was gasping for air. I could not pull myself away even if I wanted to, for we were drawn together like magnets. He pulled me closer and I leant into him forcefully, letting every emotion, every feeling and every desire evaporate into him. I forgot everything - the war, my fears for our near future, my confusion about my feelings. All I could think of was Gary. It was as though with a simple kiss he had wiped my mind clean of any thoughts, forcing me to focus only on him, and there was nothing I could do about it. There was so much to consider, so much to work out, but none of that mattered at that moment. Nothing mattered except Gary and I.

We were soon forced apart by our desperate need for air. He held my head in his hands, gazing into my eyes with intense, burning passion. It was true, I had never felt this way before, about anybody. I was overwhelmed and confused and afraid and excited all in one moment.

That moment was cut short, though, when a cry from May swept through the clearing.

* * *

"Ash! Ash what's wrong?"

My eyes widened as they bore into Gary's. He let go of me and grabbed my hand, pulling me up with his able arm. On our feet, we climbed down from the rocks and ran the short distance to the others. They stood crowding around Ash, who was kneeling on the ground, clutching his head and gritting his teeth. May kneeled beside him, her worried eyes trying to make sense of what was happening, while a panicked Pikachu scampered around, trying to find out what was wrong with its trainer. Brock shook Ash's shoulder, calling his name clearly, but there was no response.

With Gary right behind me I ran to Ash and knelt down in front of him, beside May.

"What happened?" I asked her.

"I don't know," she replied, panicked, "we were talking and then he just grabbed his head."

"Ash," I took hold of his shoulder and tried to get his attention. And then, it stopped. Ash froze, his hands fell to his sides. We all fell silent. His gaze remained ahead, but his eyes were focused now, as though he were listening to something, or someone. We glanced around at each other in confusion, but none of us were game enough to interrupt whatever it was that was going on. It took a few long and subdued minutes before Ash paused, and then glanced up at us, glancing around at us all staring at him in confusion.

"Ash?" I almost screamed. "What the hell is going on?"

His brown eyes glanced around at us, he was clearly distracted, trying to process something.

"You guys aren't going to believe this…but…" he spoke, shaking his head as if to check if he were dreaming. "That was Sabrina."

"Sabrina?" Brock asked. "What do you mean? Where?"

"In my head!"

"In your head?" May's eyes widened questioningly.

"She was speaking to me through telepathy."

The revelation mentally knocked us over. We certainly weren't expecting _that_.

"Telepathy?" Dawn asked, confused. "What…"

"She tapped into my thoughts and communicated with me telepathically. That's why I was in so much pain. She said it takes a while to access a mind so far away."

We stared at him incredulously, and then, in a single moment, as we realised he wasn't crazy and was indeed telling the truth, we showered him with questions, so many that he had to raise his arms in protest.

"Guys! Give me a second and I'll explain!"

We fell quiet; I pursed my lips in anticipation as he started to explain.

"Sabrina is in the Viridian Gym, and she is trapped there, underground, with the others from the Conference."

A collective gasp erupted from us.

"She said they are being treated humanely, but they are locked away and their Pokemon have been stolen from them. Cipher have been using drugs to surpress her psychic powers, and she is pretending that they are working whilst trying to get inside information. She heard from Jessie and James that we had not been captured. Jessie and James are working undercover trying to help the Gym Leaders escape, but it is very difficult - Cipher are _not_ foolish, they know what they're doing."

"I don't believe it… No wonder they let us escape," a shocked Dawn uttered.

"There is a girl…from the Orre Region…her name is Jovi. Sabrina said she has a way for us to take Cipher down, and she wants us to go and meet Jovi so she can explain."

"What?" May asked. "Ash, what if it's a trap? What if Cipher are forcing Sabrina to do this just to capture you and take your Pokemon?"

"She's got a point, Ash," Gary chimed in to agree with May.

"I don't think so…" Ash shook his head. "I don't know how…but I just _know_ she's telling the truth."

"How…?" I asked, gazing down at him.

"Just a feeling. I just _know…_"

My heart was filled with concern at this sudden revelation. I knew sometimes Ash could be too trusting, too naive. I certainly didn't want him putting his life in danger because of a _feeling_. But something in his eyes told me he was telling the truth, or, something told me he believed it. And even if it were a trick or a trap, I knew that he would probably go anyway, and I wouldn't let him go alone.

"Then we should go," I stated quietly. Ash peered up at me in surprise.

"Misty-" May protested, but in response I only shook my head.

"It's okay," I assured her. "We'll take precautions. You're all right - this may be a trick, but what if it's not? Sabrina is powerful, maybe more powerful than any of us could have guessed. It's not unimaginable to think that she could be doing this. After all, there's no way _our_ Gym Leaders and Elite Four would be sitting in that Gym and not be planning _something_. With or without their Pokemon, they are excellent tacticians."

A hush fell over the group. Ash mouthed a sincere thanks to me, and I nodded a 'you're welcome' in return.

"She did make one thing very clear…" Ash muttered, and all eyes fell upon him once more. "She said they're looking for us. They know we're on the loose, and they know we were behind those Draco Meteor attacks the other night. And also they're…" he trailed off uneasily, as if trying to find the right words, or perhaps he just didn't want to say it aloud.

"What, Ash?" Brock prompted him as we hung on the tense air.

"They're, in particular, looking for…me."

"You?" Gary repeated, as if seeking clarification that he had heard correctly.

"Me," Ash repeated quietly. "And it's not Cipher, it's Team Rocket that want me."

"Team Rocket…?" May grew confused.

"Does she know why?" I asked.

"No," he shook his head. "Not yet."

"Ash-" May asked quietly, "Did Sabrina say anything about…our families…?"

"Yes," his frown gave way to a small smile as he answered May. My heart leapt into the air, had he heard something about my sisters?

"Sabrina said as far as she knows, no one we know has been harmed."

May sighed with relief as I closed my eyes, feeling a small part of the weight on my shoulders lift off. Daisy, Lily and Violet were okay. That news in itself was the best I'd heard in a while… I glanced over at Brock, who was having his own moment of thankfulness. Beside him, Gary looked straight into my eyes and in a moment of understanding I knew he felt the same way about his Grandfather, who was also at the Conference. Our friends and families were the most important thing in our lives, especially right now. Being away from them, not knowing if they were okay, was a constant darkness that invaded our souls. To not feel that for even one second was sheer relief. To know that they were okay right now, at this moment, was everything to me.

Ash stood. He had that look in his eyes, that look that said he was ready for a fight. And I was ready to fight alongside him.

"When does Sabrina want us to meet Jovi?" I asked him.

"Tonight."

* * *

It was eight o'clock, and the sun had completed disappeared beneath the horizon, giving way to the shining white full moon. Full moon's usually gave me the creeps, but I was thankful for it tonight - for it would provide at least some light in the dark Viridian Forest we were about to embark into.

Brock had equipped us both with an emergency kit - first aid supplies, Pokemon potions, water and the like. I hugged him goodbye, hoping like hell this wasn't the last time I would ever see him. I wished he were coming with us, his knowledge and cool-headedness was invaluable in moments like these, but we had discussed it, and decided that it would be best for myself and Ash to go alone. We would be able to back each other up and wouldn't be distracted by anybody else.

"Be careful, Misty," he said quietly; his voice gravely serious.

"I will," I promised.

I let go of Brock and turned to Gary.

"You sure you're going to survive without me?" I asked, winking at him cheekily. He smiled absentmindedly; in the moonlight his face was even more handsome. Then, his smile dissolved into a worried grimace, a look of concern - a look of concern for _me_.

He pulled me into his arms then, and I tried very hard not to fall apart in his comforting embrace. I was afraid, yes, but I had to be there for Ash. I realised that the others were probably noticing my extended embrace with Gary, one that was not just a friendly hug goodbye. But I didn't care. If this was the last time I got to see him I wanted to feel his strong arms around me, and I never wanted to forget how they made me feel safe and loved and like nothing could hurt me. I realised then and there how strong my feelings for him actually were. It wasn't just a physical attraction, it was way more than that - it was a love like nothing I had ever experienced. It was a feeling that when I left him, a little piece of me would remain with him, and that little piece of me would not return until I was safely in his arms again. I hoped and prayed for that moment as I pulled out of his embrace, no longer conscious of the others' attention upon us. I fought the urge to kiss him, that wouldn't have been appropriate, not in front of the others, and especially not in front of Ash… We hadn't been able to finish our conversation from earlier, but as of this moment, the words unspoken between us mattered not - we knew. We just knew.

I turned to Ash, ignoring his questioning brown eyes. May stood in front of him, I could tell she was gallantly fighting back the urge to burst into tears.

Ash turned away from me and focused his attention on May. He reached over to push a stray strand of her auburn hair behind her ear and squeezed her shoulder gingerly. A tear fell from her glistening blue eyes, and in that moment I could tell how much she truly loved him.

"Please Ash…just…be careful, okay?"

He pulled her into his arms and she closed her eyes over his shoulder as he held her tightly, whispering something I couldn't understand. She nodded and pulled away, holding onto his shoulders for a few moments before letting him go.

I walked over to May; she was desperately trying to hold herself together. With a smile, I embraced her. She had become one of my closest friends, and I knew that it was difficult for her to be left behind.

"I won't let anything happen to him, I promise," I said quietly, and she nodded a smile at me as we pulled away.

"Thanks, Misty. And look after yourself, too."

With a nod, I turned away as Ash turned to face me. Pikachu jumped upon his shoulder. It was time to go.

"You ready?" I nodded as confidently as I could.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

We waved goodbye to our friends, who watched helplessly as we walked towards a huge risk, one none of us knew if we would return from. I glanced back at Gary's dark eyes as they bore into mine. As I watched him I realised he was more afraid than he let show.

May waved us goodbye helplessly. Beside her, Dawn squeezed her hand in support; Brock and Kenny stood behind them. I knew it would be as rough a night for them, waiting, as it would be for us, heading into the unknown. As we made our way out of the clearing, the others disappeared from view. It was just Ash and I now, heading to the Viridian Forest, my least favourite place in the world, to meet a girl who we didn't even know existed, on the instructions of a psychic through telepathy. When you put it like that it all seems very crazy. But Ash believed it, and I believed him. I clutched my knapsack like a lifeline - my Pokemon inside were my only protection. They weren't guns or weapons, and I would give my life for each and every one of them, but I hoped it wouldn't come to that. As I followed Ash I hoped like mad that we would return safely in a few hours. It was the only thing I could do.

* * *

"_Soldier on_

_Soldier on_

_Keep your heart_

_Close to the ground."

* * *

_

This chapter was inspired by the song 'Soldier On' by my current musical obsession - The Temper Trap. It's very poignant, and it really sets the tone for this chapter, which is setting the stage for the challenges Ash, Misty and the others have in front of them. I really loved writing this chapter, so I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any feedback, I'd love to hear it. Thanks for reading.

KCB


	7. Science of Fear

**We Build Then We Break**

_Chapter 6_

Science of Fear

* * *

_"There's a science to fear_

_It plagues my mind_

_And it keeps us right here_

_And it keeps us here"_

* * *

Silence. I despised it. But that was all that existed as Ash and I walked around the outskirts of Pallet Town, in the darkest spots we could find, to reach the Viridian Forest. So far we had made it unscathed. We had only been frightened once when a small convoy of about four soldiers went by, and we'd had to duck into the cover of a few small trees to hide from them. No matter how many times we had to hide, and no matter what level the imminent danger was, each time it happened I thought I wouldn't be able to bear it again. My heart would beat so hard it hurt, and my breaths would seem so loud and quick that I was sure the soldiers could hear me.

I walked behind Ash, who had not spoken a word to me since we left, aside from instructing me about where we were going. I didn't argue, just let him lead the way - I saw no reason to step in unless he made a stupid decision. He seemed awkward, like he wanted to say something but didn't have the nerve. I suspected it had something to do with Gary and I - the revelation of our affection made in front of his eyes would have been a shock. With each step I took a part of my mind wondered what he was thinking about it, whether he hated the idea or welcomed it. Would it make a difference to how I felt? No. Did he have a right to be angry at me about falling for Gary? No. But I still couldn't help wondering. Perhaps some part of me, deep inside, wanted him to be jealous. Perhaps I wanted him to realise that it was me he wanted all along. But those feelings were buried now, and I wouldn't let them rise to the surface. I don't believe you can just stop loving someone because you want or need to, but I did believe that I could get over him. It would just take time. Though, it didn't help that I had to be with him 24 hours a day…

Pikachu popped its head out of Ash's backpack. Ash had decided it best to keep him in there, after all he was highly recognisable with Pikachu atop his shoulder. Perhaps him not being there would give us a few extra seconds if someone were to see us. It was a strange feeling – we were practically fugitives. I wondered why they wanted Ash so desperately. Of course, he was a high-level trainer, and he was pretty famous nowadays, but did that mean they were looking for all of the other trainers of his level as well? Something about it didn't seem right. Then again, none of this seemed right.

I gave Pikachu a small smile as we pressed on. The trees were getting denser now, the Viridian Forest was not far away. I shuddered, hoping that I would be able to contain my fear when inevitably, a bug came within ten metres of me. So many things had the potential to go wrong; we were both on edge, we could both feel each other's tension and fear. With each step we got more nervous, more paranoid and anxious. My heart would go through phases of beating so hard and loud I thought the whole forest would be able to hear it, and then I would take a deep breath, calm myself, and try to focus. I had been around this circle about twenty times since we'd emerged from the mountains, and it didn't seem to be getting any better. Was there a way to switch off your fear, like flicking a light switch? Could I just suddenly make it go away and become totally brave and fearless? I doubted it; we were only human after all.

As we pressed on in silence I thought about humans - why was it that they were so power-hungry? What reason did this Team Cipher have for taking over our cities and, if they had their way, our whole country? And to make matters worse, they were using Pokemon to do it. Pokemon were such beautiful creatures, so pure of heart, they would never try something so malicious and disgusting. No, it was humans, all the time it was people who caused the hurt and wars and death and destruction.

A few minutes of silence later we could see the official entrance to the Viridian Forest. It had been a long journey up until this point, but we had no time to be exhausted - there was so much more to do.

"We're going to have to make a run for it, to get in there," Ash whispered to me. We stood in the shadows of the trees lining the path leading into the Forest, but they lead round into an archway, meaning that the only way we could get into the Forest was by being out in the open, completely in view of anyone who decided to walk by, for about twenty metres. We both hesitated for a few moments. I bit my lip as I glanced out to the path, listening for any sign of life. There was nothing, but I knew it only took a few seconds, and in that few seconds we could be dead. I sighed. We couldn't wait here forever. We had to take the risk; all we needed was a little luck. And I sure as hell hoped luck was on our side tonight.

"Alright, let's go," I grabbed Ash's arm and he looked at me blankly for a few drawn-out seconds. I let go and turned away, I don't know why I had done it, but my level of discomfort around my best friend had just reached new levels. I cursed my idiocy. I never let Ash see that I was afraid. Maybe it was my utter need to protect him that made me that way. It had been like that from the beginning - I didn't want to be the weak girl that followed him around, I wanted to be strong, to look after myself, and in some sense, to look after him. Deep down I was scared to death, but I thought if I acted tough enough he would never see through my facade. And he hadn't, until now. I shook my head of my thoughts; this was not the time to be thinking about anything but crossing over the path in front of us and entering the Viridian Forest.

With another quick check, we stepped out onto the path. Like our encounter days ago stepping out of the shadows of the trees was not a nice experience. I felt completely exposed. I couldn't catch my breath fast enough as I ran. Our shoes scratched against the dirt path, making a lot of noise. My heart was beating faster and faster with fear, and then suddenly, we were in the forest.

Quicker than Pikachu's Quick Attack, we ducked behind a large bush, surveying the area carefully. The Viridian Forest was a maze of green and brown, and not the easiest place to navigate. I had only been through here a few times, and I'd hated every second of it, so I knew we couldn't rely on my memory to find out way. I just hoped Ash knew where he was going. I glanced over at Ash, his eyes were darting around, but he was focused, sharp. He looked like he had a plan anyway. I _hoped_ he had a plan.

We were to meet not far into the forest, for which I was glad, at point B. Nowadays they had different points marked out for travelling trainers to locate on the map, to help them find their way. It was a great idea, and one which would have helped back when we were travelling through here for the first time. Gary, who had done quite a bit of research in the forest, had explained to us where point B was.

"When you get in, go straight until you see a hut. Then, turn right. Go through the trees, but follow the path and eventually you'll reach a giant tree. It's the biggest one in the forest. That tree is point B."

It seemed simple enough, as long as we didn't run into any soldiers.

"Follow me, ok Mist? I'm going to go through the thickest part of the forest. We can't risk going anywhere near the path."

I nodded, but gulped inwardly. I could already hear the humming of disgusting, gross bugs in the distance.

He seemed to have noticed my uncertainty, at which he smiled.

"What's so funny?" I whispered fiercely. If he was picking this moment to have a go at me about my bug phobia, I wasn't going to be very impressed.

"You," he stated, and he looked irritatingly comfortable as I grit my teeth in annoyance at him. "But don't worry, Brock knew you'd struggle, so he gave me this," with a grin, he pulled a small bottle from his pocket.

"Max Repel," I whispered, "Genius."

After we had sprayed it on - well, I more like doused myself with it - we were on our way.

Thankfully the Max Repel worked its charms and the bugs stayed away as we made our way through a thick patch of trees that followed the straight path into the Forest. Though we were in the shade of the branches I still felt insecure and exposed. I hated that feeling and I hated that we had to feel it, here in our own country, where just a few weeks ago we had walked around freely. I thought of all the trainers who would pass through the Viridian Forest every day. Now, it was deathly silent, and it remained that way as we eventually reached the place where we were to meet Jovi. I checked my watch, we were at least fifteen minutes early. There was nothing to do but wait. We sat in a patch of trees where we could see out into the clearing. Only the sounds of the forest could be heard, the calls of Hoot Hoot and Pidgey, the scurrying of Rattata and the various Bug Pokemon that called the Viridian Forest their home. Even they seemed to know something was wrong, though, for their calls seemed stressed and uneasy. Maybe they had seen something, or maybe, like a lot of people have said, Pokemon just have that sense to know when something is not right. And right now, there was a lot that was not right.

At least ten minutes passed where both Ash and I were too afraid to move or speak. We were taking a huge risk doing this and I was growing more and more apprehensive about it as each second ticked by.

"Ash," I whispered, "we should come up with a plan, just in case…" I trailed off, biting my lip. He shook his head.

"It will be fine," he said in a whisper so quiet it was barely audible.

I wondered how he could be so confident, how he had so much trust in the supposed voice of Sabrina that he heard. It wasn't like I doubted him, not at all, I just felt like this whole situation was so farfetched and unreal. Then again, we had been through some pretty unreal experiences. But this was setting the bar high. My mind was racing through every possibility and trying to prepare for each one, when Ash suddenly froze.

My eyes widened at the sight – it was a girl, a little younger than us, dressed in black from head to toe, with a few locks of bright blue hair poking out from under her cap. She came out from behind the large tree that was point B, seeming very uneasy, much like us really. Ash and I both paused, unsure as what to do. It appeared that Sabrina's instructions were indeed coming to life, but how suspicious did we need to be? How did we know she wasn't going to attack us? How did we know it wasn't a trap? I glanced at Ash, who was peering at the girl as though thinking the same thoughts as me. In the end, I thought, we had to take the risk. We had come this far after all, and the girl didn't look like she was about to attack us. Perhaps it wasn't reason, but intuition that led us to step out from the darkness and walk towards the young girl, who seemed to be getting very shifty standing out in the open. She saw us as soon as we stood, and seemed to scrutinise us with her eyes, which, as I got closer I noticed were the same shade of blue as her hair. I also noticed that she looked tired and stressed, like the war had completely worn her out, like she was tired of fighting. She seemed to come to the conclusion that Ash was the person she was here to meet, because her shoulders seemed to relax slightly.

"Ash Ketchum?" she asked quietly as we got closer. Beside me, Ash nodded.

"This is Misty."

"There is a cabin just over there," she pointed to the right. "It's empty. Follow me."

We followed her to a cabin which Ash and I recognised automatically.

"It's Samurai's cabin," I whispered to him as we stepped inside. Well, obviously it wasn't anymore, for it was long since abandoned. Perhaps Samurai had gone on his own Pokemon journey. Perhaps he was dead, I thought nonchalantly, immediately shocked by my own negativity.

Ash didn't answer; his eyes were fixed ahead of him as we stood facing Jovi, an uncomfortable silence in the tense air. The only light available to us was that of the moon, anything else would attract attention.

"It's nice to meet you," Jovi's small voice spoke into the silence as she regarded us both with her brilliant blue eyes. "I'm Jovi."

Ash and I nodded, though I must have looked slightly reserved, because she said, "I understand how hard it must have been to trust a voice in your head," she said with a small smile, "but I'm glad you did."

I had to hand it to Ash, he sure had good instincts.

"There is probably a lot you don't understand…" she said, saying the words as though they were a response to my thoughts. If she _was_ psychic, I wondered whether she could read minds. As the thought of such a thing hit me, my thoughts instantly recoiled as I tried to clear my mind of anything controversial. Jovi smiled, leaving me contemplating whether or not I had guessed correctly.

"Could you explain it to us?" Jovi's apparent psychic powers had seemingly gone unnoticed to Ash. Jovi took a deep breath, her eyes glazing over slightly, as though she were about to embark on a journey that was too emotional to speak of.

"I am from the region of Orre. It was there that Team Cipher originated. Ten years ago, an evil organization called Team Snagem manufactured a device called the 'Snag machine', allowing them to capture Pokemon from trainers, or, in other words, steal them… As if that wasn't bad enough, Snagem then partnered with Team Cipher, who took their 'Snag machines' and turned them into something much more sinister. Once stolen, Cipher turned these Pokemon into 'Shadow Pokemon', using a process whereby they close the door to the Pokemon's heart, making it unable to feel anything but a fierce hatred and will for battle. Cipher soon began distributing these 'Shadow Pokemon' around Orre. A former member of Team Snagem, Wes, abandoned his organization, stole one of their 'Snag Machines' and fought against Cipher, defeating all of their agents and Evice, the head of Cipher, while also capturing all of the Shadow Pokemon and purifying their hearts. In doing so he single-handedly brought the organization to its knees, ridding Orre of its evil. But, that wasn't the end of Cipher. Five years later, Cipher rose again with a new technology to create Shadow Pokemon. This time, it was my brother, Michael, who put a stop to their plans," Jovi paused momentarily as her voice started to waver, but before we could ask if she was okay, she continued on with the story.

"Cipher had somehow captured the legendary Pokemon, Lugia, and turned it into a Shadow Pokemon which they claimed was immune to purification. Our mother was working for Professor Krane, who had developed a newer version of the 'Snag Machine', with an eyepiece capable of identifying Shadow Pokemon and then capturing them from trainers. My brother defeated Cipher's Grand Master, Greevil, and Orre thought that was the end of them. But, it was not. Greevil had two sons, also part of the organization – Eldes and Ardos. While Eldes was arrested with his father, Ardos somehow managed to evade arrest and went into hiding. It's been six years since then, and six months ago, Ardos came out of hiding. It turned out he had been tracking my brother, and in a revenge attack, he…had him murdered."

Shock cut through me like a knife as my eyes widened. Jovi bit down on her lip in an attempt to stifle her own emotion, as I glanced between her and Ash, who turned to me in sorrow.

"I'm so sorry," Ash spoke.

"That must have been awful…" I added, feeling an overwhelming sense of sorrow for the girl, younger than us, and yet she had been through so much.

"My brother was so brave… Cipher are monsters. I guess it was their way of telling people not to get involved," Jovi continued. "But I can't back down now. When Cipher rose again, I knew that I had to step up, that I had to avenge my brother. And that is why I am here."

"What can we do?" Ash said immediately. I felt my own surge of desire to help, to do something, anything, to stop this evil from infiltrating into any more of our lives.

"I have been training with Sabrina for the past six years, and I've developed a strong psychic connection with her. That's how I have been communicating with her while she's been locked up."

"Don't they-"

"Realise she's doing it?" Jovi answered my question before I could finish it, leaving me startled and once again wondering whether she had read my mind, or just guessed what I was going to say.

"Sabrina is a very accomplished psychic. They think they have her psychic powers contained, but they are wrong."

We both nodded, we knew Sabrina was not one to be underestimated.

Jovi reached over to her backpack, lying on the floor beside her. She unzipped it and reached in to pull out four small black machines.

"This," she held one out to show us, "is the latest Snag Machine. My mother's boss, Professor Krane, has further developed it, so it's more compact that previous models."

My eyes analysed the machine. It was built in the form of a glove, with a circular dome on the top of the hand. In her other hand she pulled out four blue eyepieces.

"And this is the aura reader. By putting this on you will be able to identify Shadow Pokemon. When you do, you use the Snag Machine to catch them."

"Once caught, the Pokemon can be purified, freeing them from their state of close-heartedness."

"How do you purify them?" Ash asked, his face tight with concentration.

"There are two ways…" Jovi put the Snag Machine down as she paused for a few moments. "You can use the Relic Stone, or you can use the Purification Chamber. Unfortunately both are located back in Orre…but Professor Krane is working on a more portable Purification Chamber, one that can be transported."

With a sigh, I brushed my bangs back off of my face. The forest was humid and in the small cabin the air was thicker.

"Your mission…" Jovi went on, "if you choose to accept it, will be to capture back as many Shadow Pokemon as you can. It may be a slow process, but as far as I'm concerned, anything that has the possibility of hindering their process is a step forward. We can't allow them to take our world for their own, and we can't allow them to take our Pokemon, let alone enslave them."

Jovi's thoughts mirrored my own, and one look at Ash's determined face and I knew his too.

"Of course we accept. We can't just sit back and do _nothing_," he spoke, his voice pitched with an unwavering sense of resolve.

Jovi looked relieved that her trip out here wasn't just a waste. For the first time since we had met her, she gave a tiny smile. Just as I was driven by the fierce desire to help, to make a difference, I was equally as afraid. This was something on a much bigger scale than we had ever done. There was a lot more at stake, and a lot more to lose.

"There are a _lot_ of people and Pokémon that are being hurt out there…and we're the only ones who can stop that from happening. Please, be careful, and good luck."

With those words, Jovi exited the cabin, leaving us alone. I looked down at the machine in my hand, and then at Ash. His eyebrows were furrowed in concentration.

"What do you think?" I asked him.

"Let's get back to the others," he said, taking off his backpack and putting two snag machines and earpieces inside. The other he secured on to his arm and over his right eye. I did the same, and we left as silently as we had entered the cabin.

The eeriness of the forest made goosbumps form on my arms. The trees seemed to sway ominously, the calls of the Pokémon panicked, as if they were forewarning something sinister. I didn't like it one bit, and I wanted out, and fast.

I followed Ash's lead as we went back the way we had come, but we had only been walking for about ten minutes when…

"Hey you, kids!" a gruff voice came from our left. In front of me, Ash jerked his head in the direction of the voice. Fear rose up within me so much so that I wanted to vomit. It was them, the enemy, for that I was certain. Ash grabbed my hand and pulled me to the right, my heart was pounding so hard that the branches scraping my legs had no feeling, like I was watching it happen to someone else. Large footsteps could be heard following us. Ash looked back at me, his face white with fear. We both knew it was no use, the sound of us running through the forest was a dead giveaway, and the only other option – going out into the open – was sure to get us caught. Ash stopped running, his hand still clutching mine.

"What are we going to do?" I whispered. I had never been so afraid.

"Just stay behind me," he ordered, but instead, I stood beside him. I wanted to protect him as much as he wanted to protect me.

Two large men came crashing through the bushes less than thirty seconds later. They were dressed in the same uniforms we had seen in Viridian. Sinister smiles met our horrified faces.

"Found ya," one of them uttered sarcastically.

I glanced over at Ash, who had covered his fear with a look of determination. I saw him grab his belt, and I knew what his plan was.

It was time for a Pokémon battle.

* * *

_To be continued…_

* * *

I just wanted to thank everyone who has reviewed this story in the past year encouraging me to update. I hope that this chapter has satisfied. :) I have had a pretty horrid year health-wise – which is the reason for my absence – but I hope to get back into the swing of things and update all of my current fanfics. Thanks for sticking with me. :)

The lyrics and chapter title are from the song 'Science of Fear' by The Temper Trap.


	8. Us Against the World

We Build Then We Break

Chapter 7

Us Against the World

It all happened so fast. Ash pulled out a Pokeball and threw it - Infernape materialised in front of us. He whispered to Pikachu to stay inside the backpack. I took a Poke ball from my belt and called out Starmie. The two soldiers called out a Tyranitar and a Nidoqueen, both were shrouded in that ominous purple aura that we had seen in the Pokemon back in Viridian City. Their eyes spewed venom, their teeth snapping together viciously. These Pokemon didn't just look like they wanted to fight, they looked like they wanted to _kill_. I swallowed hard, anxiety sweeping through me, I was concerned for our Pokemon - strong as they were, these enemy Pokemon's mere presence was frightening.

Before I even had a few seconds to think, they were upon us, attacks called out, they charged towards Infernape and Starmie. My voice called out an attack for me - I had no control over what I was doing, I felt like I was watching myself fight. Beside me, Ash guided Infernape's moves with tact and consideration. Ash was a brilliant trainer, I always knew it, and now, that fact alone was saving our lives. Together, we took down the two vicious creatures; while they were strong the soldiers didn't have the smarts to outwit our teamwork, and we were able to overpower them. Ash took a Poke ball from his backpack and loaded it in the snag machine, it flew out of the other end and towards the Tyranitar. I followed his lead and shot one towards the Nidoqueen. The Poke balls returned to us; we had won.

But I didn't have a chance to breathe a sigh of relief.

The soldiers were angry. They had been outwitted and they were not going to have it. I had the foresight to see it before Ash.

"Let's get out of here, now," I whispered to him as the men eyed us with malice spitting from their eyes, yelling out profanities and insults. Ash knew from the way I was looking at him what I was thinking. I saw the men take a step forward, their hands moving to the weapons fastened to their belts. My eyes widened and my breath caught in my throat. Ash grabbed my arm and swung me around, my vision failed me for a few seconds as it caught up to my movements, and we were running, back through the forest.

The men were hot on our trail, I could hear their big boots crushing the forest floor below them and the grunts of their voices as they manouvered through the trees. We had no idea which direction we were running in, it was so dark we could barely see a foot in front of us. Trees and vines and bushes appeared before me, the forest swaying as I took each step, listening desperately for the sound of their footsteps to die away, praying that they would get tired of running, that somehow we could manage to escape. Any other possibility was too horrifying to even contemplate. A shot rang out and hit a tree to my right, I thought my heart had stopped for a few seconds but realised I was still running, I wasn't hit. I looked over to Ash desperately, our eyes met in a moment of panic.

"Keep going," he urged me on.

I felt somewhere between scared to death and an insane sense of adrenaline. My lungs ached as I heaved every breath in as though it may be my last. More shots rang out, each time I wondered if I was dead, and the next moment realised I wasn't, and this would continue in torturous circles each time I heard the gun go off.

Then the unthinkable happened. My foot caught on something on the floor, a vine, probably, and I fell, my knees skidding across the forest floor. I let out a small wail and Ash turned, realising what had happened, and rushed back to me.

But it was too late.

We only had a few seconds on them. They came crashing through the trees. I felt oddly calm. This was it, the end of freedom. Would they kill us, would they capture and torture us? My face drained of colour and my head was spinning as I grabbed Ash's hand and scrambled to my feet. We lunged away, but one of the men grabbed my leg and pulled me back. I shrieked, but no sound came out. In fact I could hear nothing. I saw Ash's stricken face as he realised what had happened. He lunged forward to grab me but the man pulled me back, his big hands squeezing my arms so hard I thought he might snap them in half. I gasped in pain, and adrenaline kicked in again, and I kicked my legs and flailed around to get out of his grip, but my resistance was futile. Then Ash went tearing forward at him, I had never seen him so angry as he was in that moment. His eyes were blazing with fury and desperation.

"Let her _go_," I heard him yell through the chaos. The other soldier went to grab him but Ash weaved under him - this caught the other one off guard and when Ash crashed into him, knocking both of us over, I was able to rip myself from his grasp. I begged my shaking legs not to fail me now as I sprung towards Ash. The men had already recovered and were standing, muttering profanities - they were so angry, and our chance of getting away was looking slim.

Ash did the only thing he could do to save us.

With one command, Pikachu leapt from his backpack and lit up the night, sending volts of electricity to the men, who writhed in pain as the currents surged through their bodies.

We ran, so fast. Every second counted. I don't think I realised we were out of harm's way until we were finally out of the forest. I fell to my knees, the adrenaline that was keeping me running finally failing me. My breaths were short and I could feel tears clinging to my eyes. Ash knelt beside me, to my right, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"You okay?" he asked. His voice sounded far away, but I nodded, my voice was caught in my throat, and I couldn't seem to speak.

"Come on," he stood, "we have to keep going."

I stood, wondering how Ash could be so calm when I was such a mess.

Ash pulled me up and didn't let go until I was steady on my feet. I had to admit, he had been my rock on this 'mission'. I knew I had to toughen up, be more like him. He was thinking like a soldier, I'd never seen this side of him.

"Ready?" he asked, his eyes studying me carefully.

"Yep," was all I could offer. He seemed satisfied enough.

The next few hours were hell. I guessed it must have been about 4 am when we reached Pallet Town. Having been out in the wild for so many years, you just got used to the way the air felt at certain times of the day, and being able to tell without a watch. Once in Pallet, Ash and I decided to keep moving right away, desperate to get back to the others, to a place where we knew we were safe. Despite being so exhausted I couldn't even feel myself moving, we made it up the mountain and then, just as the sun was peaking over to horizon, into the clearing.

I don't remember much about the next few hours. I recall seeing the others rush towards us. Gary, his face pale with worry, limped toward me. I practically collapsed, my knees buckling and giving way, when I saw him. I murmured something illegible to even myself, and then my world went black.

When I woke up, he was sitting beside me. I didn't know if I was in a dream or not, until he reached down to stroke my cheek. It all hit me, the fear I had felt, the man's hands grabbing me, the realisation that my life was about to be over. I was mentally exhausted, it was too much.

I felt tears sting my eyes - the burden of the past day was crushing me and the only way to relieve the pain was to cry. Gary said nothing, just pulled my trembling body to his and held me close.

"I thought it was all over." I cried into his chest, gripping his shirt like it were a lifeline.

"It's okay, you're here now, you're going to be okay," his voice was calm and comforting.

"Is Ash okay?"

"Yes," he replied, "he's fine."

"And everyone else?"

"Everyone's okay."

"Okay."

"Misty-"

"Yes?" I willed myself to pull away from him and looked up into his sapphire eyes, they were almost sparkling from the tears that had filled them. I'd never seen him cry.

"I'm so glad you're alright," he said, his eyes were so honest. I leant back into his welcoming embrace and his arms closed around me. I could feel his heart beating against his chest, each beat somehow assuring me that I was safe, that I was going to be okay.

There was one thing that was tugging on my thoughts, though, one thing that lingered - Ash had used Pikachu, and that meant that even if they hadn't recognised us before, those soldiers definitely knew who we were now. When they recovered they would report the fact that they had seen us, and the hunt would be on.

I didn't blame Ash for doing at it - Pikachu had saved our lives. Perhaps they wouldn't remember - perhaps Pikachu had fried their brain cells enough that our identities would remain a secret.

I was wrong.

Over the next few days, they came looking - big time. Planes, helicopters and Pokemon, flew over constantly. They were searching for someone, and I had no doubt that that _someone_ was us. I felt fairly confident that we were well hidden, but we were all on edge. I couldn't sleep because every time I closed my eyes I felt myself being pulled away by the burly soldier, his arms showing no mercy as they jerked me away from my friends. Ash was no better, and we spent countless hours sitting up at night, talking, planning our next move, until we both could barely function. After three days, the searching appeared to have stopped, and I succumbed to sleep, but maintained that we have a lookout at all times. Another thing that had changed was my relationship with Ash. Ever since we had returned, he was awkward around me, and I knew why.

"Gary," I said one night as we were doing the lookout shift together. It was about two am, and the air was especially chilly. We sat under a blanket together, his arm around me. He turned his eyes from the sky to meet mine. I felt myself waver slightly under his exploring gaze, as I always seemed to. His eyes looked especially dazzling under that night's moonlight.

"Yes?"

"I...Ash has been acting weird around me. I know he knows something is going on between us. I just...don't know what to do. I don't know about anything anymore..."

"Well...how do you feel...about Ash?" Gary asked. His features tensed, he seemed nervous.

"I...I love Ash," I said truthfully. "Or...I thought I loved him. Now I don't know if I was confusing that for something else. Because you..." I felt my cheeks flush under Gary's tense stare, "you make me feel...something different entirely."

Gary's lips curled up in a smile. My heart rate quickened, Gary and I had not officially talked about our feelings for one-another; for the past few days, I wasn't mentally ready to address it. My thoughts were a tangled mess, thoughts of Ash and Gary and almost being captured swirled together in a jumble of uncertainty and fear. I was exhausted, and each questioning look Ash sent my way made it worse.

"In my head, I never had any doubt that Ash and I would end up together. But I don't feel for him the way I feel for you. I don't know if I ever will... And even if I did, he obviously has a thing for May and...this is such a mess."

Gary reached up and gingerly cupped my face in his hand. His gaze burned into mine.

"Gary...I never expected this...us, whatever we are."

"The unexpected is always scary, Misty, but sometimes, it's where the best things are made."

His lips met mine, and any doubt was immediately forced from my mind. As soon as he kissed me, I forgot all but him and me, as though nothing else existed. But when he pulled away, that all-too-familiar feeling of doubt washed over me.

It was true - I hadn't really known Gary Oak for that long, not properly anyway. But, I felt like I knew him better than anyone else. Perhaps it was our dire situation, but I truly felt something so strong for him that there was no way I could deny it, or question it. Ash had saved my life the other night, but _Gary_ had made my life worthwhile. The whole time I was running, I was thinking of _him_, getting back to _him_. These feelings weren't simply out of desperation, they were _real._

As I lay back down against Gary, feeling his arm tighten around me, I knew one thing for certain.

It was time to talk to Ash.

_To be continued..._

Thanks to everyone who continues to support this fanfic! I know that I don't update very regularly, so thanks for sticking with me. And don't forget a little review goes a long way!


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